Your body and sex life significantly change throughout pregnancy and childbirth. Vaginal tissue may become thinner and more sensitive due to hormonal changes during birth. Additionally, your cervix, uterus, and vagina must "return" to their original sizes that was before pregnancy. In other words, your body requires some rest after giving birth and that can be one of reasons you might feel low sex drive postpartum. There is no set period of time after having birth that you must wait before engaging in sexual activity. The majority of medical professionals advise women to hold off for four to six weeks after a vaginal birth.
Role of Hormones in low sex drive postpartum:
Hormones are very important for postpartum healing and resuming regular sexual activity. Estrogen levels return to pre-pregnancy levels in the days immediately following delivery. Estrogen levels may fall below pre-pregnancy levels if lactating. Low levels of oestrogen increase the chance of vaginal dryness since the hormone contributes to the production of natural vaginal lubrication. During intercourse, dry tissue can cause discomfort and even bleeding. Your chance of getting sick rises as a result.
During pregnancy, the hormones progesterone and oestrogen are essential for the proper development of your unborn child. They also play a crucial role in your sex desire. During pregnancy, these hormone levels are extraordinarily high. They drastically decrease after delivery and return to pre-pregnancy levels. This implies that for a few weeks, you could not have any sexual desire. However, you should wait four to six weeks as your body heals. You may opt to postpone starting up your sex life for a while after your doctor gives you the all-clear to do so.
What to expect and what can you do if you are having low sex drive postpartum:
It could take longer for your libido to recover if you're nursing than it would for women who aren't. This is due to the fact that nursing lowers oestrogen levels. It is not advised to use oestrogen pills if you are nursing since they could affect milk supply. You and your spouse might not feel like intimacy is even on the table when you combine hormonal changes with the exhaustion of being a new parent. The hormones will start to operate again once you finish nursing or when your body gets used to its new normal. At that point, your libido ought to return.