Post-natal Care

It’s hard to be exact about when your periods will start again, as everyone is different.If you are breastfeeding your baby, your periods may not return for months or even years after childbirth. If your baby is being fed using formula, you may find your periods return shortly after childbirth, usually at the 6 week mark.

How long before your periods return while breastfeeding can depend on:
• your baby’s breastfeeding pattern (how often and how long your baby is breastfeeding)
• how sensitive your body is to breastfeeding hormones

When to have sex again is mostly about when you feel ready. The general advice is to wait until your 6 week check up with your doctor or midwife.

If you had stitches following your delivery, those sutures need time to dissolve, and the tissue needs time to heal so that it’s strong enough to withstand sexual intercourse. Many mothers feel pain or discomfort during sex, but this usually improves with time. Using a lubricant might make sex more comfortable. Sometimes discomfort can be because of muscle spasms or anxiety.

If you had a tear-free vaginal delivery and no other complications, you can resume sexual activity as soon as two weeks after giving birth, if you so choose.

You can fall pregnant before your cycle returns, so even if breast feeding (not a reliable contraceptive) contraception needs to be considered.

Breast feeding can cause vaginal dryness and pain, this is due to the lack of oestrogen in your system that occurs when you breast feed. Breast feeding can also affect your libido.

Some women and their partners find that sex is less satisfying because the muscles are too loose after being stretched during the birth. The muscles will gain tone again – pelvic floor exercises can help.

On the first day you may soak up to one sanitary pad each hour. Over the next several days, the bleeding will slowly get less each day and change colour from bright red to a pink or brown colour and then to a creamy colour. Most women will stop bleeding between four and six weeks after giving birth. Some women may bleed for longer or shorter than this. It is common for the bleeding to be irregular, often changing in colour.

You may have heavier bleeding:

• in the morning when you get up
• after breastfeeding
• after exercising