Sexual Health

Women can actually get pregnant much quicker than they often think right after having a baby. Your body is able to ovulate, which means release an egg, before you actually get a period, and many women don’t get a true period in the first several months after having a baby. It is important to recognize that while you might not think that you can get pregnant, you can, and it can happen within the first several weeks of having a baby. For most women that is not what they would be planning—they want time to be with their baby that they just had and time to recover. So, thinking about having two kids under the age of one would probably be a little much for any woman. It is important to realize you can get pregnant and think about ways about preventing pregnancy if that is not what you desire.

We suggest that you wait about six weeks before being sexually active. This time allows your body to recover from the delivery. It is also important to reduce your chance of infection. After delivery, your cervix, which is the opening to the uterus, is actually open, so if you are sexually active, it could increase your chance of infection. It is important to be able to recover well and to spend time with your baby. It’s also important to think about how you feel. While breastfeeding is a wonderful thing, it can affect your vagina, and it can affect the way sex feels by causing vaginal dryness. You should be the one to choose when you want to be sexually active so that you feel comfortable and that it is a good experience for you and your partner.

There are many options available to women after giving birth and which option you choose depends on many factors. Talk with your healthcare provider whether you are planning on getting pregnant in the near future, whether you don’t want any more children, or whether you are planning on waiting to get pregnant. You should ask about your medical conditions, so that we can tailor your birth control options to you. If you do not desire having any more children, a great option is sterilization for you or your partner. Again, that means no more children, and you have to be confident in that decision. Another great option are the implants. These last up to three years and they prevent pregnancy during that time, and you can of course get it removed by your provider at any time. Also, intrauterine devices or IUDs can last from three, five, to ten years and those are excellent options as well. Sterilization, implants, and IUDs are the most effective options out there. Then there are options that last less time than the previously mentioned options. These include the depo-shot that you get every three months, as well as the pill, patch, and ring that you have to take every day, every week, or every month. So, there is a huge array of options out there, and it really depends on what is going to be the best fit for you as the patient and with your partner.

How long to wait before having another baby is a really personal question. It’s going to be between you and your partner to discuss what you’re thinking about in terms of your family size, and how many children you want to eventually have. For some people, they are wanting to have many children and so they are thinking that it would be best to have children one after another. It is important though to space the pregnancies to allow time for both the mom to recover, to allow for bonding with the new baby, and to get ready for the next pregnancy. So looking at different studies, one of the optimal times for getting pregnant is about 18 months. That allows you the time to recover and bond with your baby. In the end, every woman is different, and it’s going to depend on what your pregnancy plans are, and how many children you want to have, but I think waiting about 18 months is a good idea.