Whoa! Hold your horses! Although we classically tell women to wait 6 weeks after delivery to resume sex, many do not and there isn’t really any science behind this advice. The actual answer varies by woman, and likely depends on how you delivered (vaginally or cesarean), if you had problems (a bad tear or no tear), and whether you have the energy and interest.
Here are some things you should know:
- If you aren’t lactating, you will probably ovulate again about 25 days after delivery. This means you could get pregnant from sex that happens as early as 3 weeks after delivery. Since the time of return to ovulation is variable, then just assume that you are fertile any time after two weeks or so postpartum
- If you are breastfeeding, you probably won’t ovulate in the first 6 weeks, but you shouldn’t count on this.
- If you had a vaginal delivery with a tear, you may need four weeks to heal before sex is comfortable (and sometimes much longer if the tear was severe or it’s not healing well).
So when should you have sex? When you feel like and you feel healed; but make sure you use birth control or you might have two babies in the same year! Most women have sex before their 6 weeks postpartum check-up and most of those women have sex the first time at 3-4 weeks after delivery. It’s really up to how you feel.