Is sex in pregnancy safe or not?

It is perfectly healthy to have sex in pregnancy unless your doctor or midwife has advised you not to do so.

Getting sex doesn’t harm your kids. Your partner’s penis can’t penetrate inside your vagina, and the kid can’t tell what’s going on.

It’s natural, however, that your sex drive changes during pregnancy. This isn’t anything to think about, but it’s good to talk to your partner about it.

Some couples find having sex very relaxing in pregnancy, while others often feel like they don’t want to. You may find other ways to be romantic or to make love. The most important thing is to speak to each other about your feelings.

Is Sex Safe in Pregnancy?

Sex is a regular normal part of pregnancy—if you have a normal pregnancy. Penetration and intercourse movements will not affect the infant who is covered by your abdomen and the muscular walls of the uterus. Your baby is also cushioned by the fluid of the amniotic sac.

Orgasm contractions are not the same as labour contractions. Still, some doctors suggest avoiding sex in the final weeks of pregnancy as a general safety precaution, claiming that semen hormones called prostaglandins may trigger contractions. One exception could be that of women who are out of date and who wish to induce labour. Some doctors claim that prostaglandins in semen potentially cause full-term or past pregnancy work because the gel used to “ripen” the cervix and induce labour often contains prostaglandins. But other doctors claim that this semen/labour link is only theoretical and that having sex does not cause harm.

As far as orgasm is concerned, these contractions are not the same as labour contractions. There’s no problem there then.

How can pregnancy affect your sex life?

Your interest in sex and appetite for sex will change during pregnancy due to increasing and falling hormone levels and other changes in your body. If your mood is, let your partner know what you feel relaxed or uncomfortable with. Your partner’s appetite for sex can also increase or decrease. Talking freely with your partner about these problems will help.

Here are some common changes in sex drive that you can experience during pregnancy:

• First trimester: Changing your hormone levels early in pregnancy and changing your body’s shape can make you feel sexy. But they can lead to pain that makes you less interested in sex, like feeling exhausted or getting nausea in your breasts and having to go to the bathroom sometimes.
• Second trimester: Discomforts in the first trimester may have gone away, or you may be able to handle them better in the second trimester. Your stomach is rising, but it’s still small enough to have sex comfortably. In reality, you may want to have sex more often than you did in the past! Women add about 3 pounds of blood during pregnancy, and much of the blood flow below your waist. You can find the extra blood flow helps you get an orgasm easier.
• Third trimester: If you and your wife both want it, it’s safe to have sex before your baby is born unless your doctor has told you otherwise. Towards the end of pregnancy, you may feel less interested or less secure in having sex. You may be less interested in sex because you’re more focused on giving birth and having a new baby. It’s all right to have these emotions!

When Not to Have Sex in Pregnancy?

If you have any of the following forms of high-risk pregnancy, your doctor can advise you not to have sex:

• You are at risk of miscarriage or history of past miscarriage
• You are at risk for early labour (contractions before 37 weeks of pregnancy)
• You have vaginal bleeding, discharge, or cramping without a specific cause.
• Your amniotic bag is leaking fluid or has broken membranes.
• Your cervix was opened too early in pregnancy.
• Your placenta is too low in your uterus (placenta previa)
• You foresee twins, triplets, or other “multiples.”

Bear in mind that if your doctor says “no sex,” something that includes orgasm or sexual pleasure, not just sexual intercourse.

Can sex in pregnancy cause a miscarriage?

Sex is not going to cause a miscarriage. Miscarriage is also the result of a fetus not developing normally. A 2011 study trusted Source also concluded that sex does not cause early labor in low-risk pregnancy.

In reality, sex can also help with labour. “There are many couples who have sex until the woman goes to labour,” Buehler says. “Couples can do what they wish if there is no medical excuse, or if either or both partners are not uninterested.”

However, if you’re having sex with new or multiple partners, wear a condom before you know their STI status. Sexually transmitted infections can lead to possible pelvic inflammatory diseases, which may lead to early labor, miscarriage, and other serious health complications.

What are the best sexual positions during pregnancy?

People should prefer positions that do not put pressure on the pregnant abdomen during later pregnancy, such as the missionary position. If a woman lies on her back, the baby’s weight can put extra pressure on her internal organs or major arteries.

A pregnant woman can feel more relaxed in positions where she can control the depth and pace of penetration.

Comfortable positions can include a pregnant woman lying on top of her partner, spooning side by side, or sitting on the edge of the bed.

Are condoms necessary?

Having a sexually transmitted infection during pregnancy can cause serious health problems for you and your child. Stop all types of sex—vaginal, genital, and anal—when your partner has an active or recently diagnosed with a sexually transmitted infection.

Use a condom if you:

• You don’t have a mutually monogamous relationship.
• In pregnancy, you want to have sex with a new partner.

Oral and anal sex

Oral sex is absolutely healthy to proceed during pregnancy. However, a partner should avoid blowing air into a pregnant woman’s vagina, as this may cause an air embolism when an air bubble blocks a blood vessel. Although uncommon, air embolism may be life-threatening for both the woman and the infant.

Anal sex will not harm the infant, but it may be painful for a person to have pregnancy-related haemorrhoids. People should avoid anal sex followed by vaginal sex, as this may allow bacteria to spread from the rectum to the vagina resulting in infection.

Benefits of sex in pregnancy

Sex during pregnancy can have many benefits. Possible benefits shall include:

• Stronger orgasms: Increased flow of blood to the genitals could mean an increase in the number of more potent orgasms in pregnant women.
• Keeping fit: Sex burns calories which can help keep both partners fit.
• The bond between partners: Some couples find that sexual activity brings them closer together during pregnancy.
• A boost to the immune system: A 2004 study showed that sex raises IgA, an antibody that helps keep colds and other infections at bay.
• Greater satisfaction: Orgasms produce endorphins that can make your mother and child feel comfortable and secure.

When to call a doctor?

In a safe pregnancy, sex is not associated with any risk to the mother or infant. If it’s sex-related or not if a woman has any unexplained pain or bleeding during pregnancy, she should call her doctor immediately.

Outlook

In most cases, sex in pregnancy does not pose a danger to the mother or infant. Some positions can become more or less comfortable as the pregnancy progresses.

A woman may experience changes in her desire to have sex during and after pregnancy. Talking freely and frankly with sexual partners will help people continue to have a healthy sex life in pregnancy.