Glossary

Term · Postpartum: Your Body

dyspareunia

Also: painful sex, painful intercourse, sex pain

Pain during or after sexual intercourse. It is common after birth and often has a treatable cause, such as scarring, dryness, or pelvic floor tension.

In plain words

Dyspareunia is the medical term for pain during sex. It can happen at the entrance of the vagina, deeper inside, or in the pelvis. After birth it is common. Causes include healing tissue, dryness from low estrogen during breastfeeding, scar tissue, and tight . Pain that is sharp, that lasts, or that comes with bleeding, discharge, or fever needs a call to a provider. Many people find that the pain eases with time, lubricant, slower pacing, and . Sex after birth is a question many mothers do not feel they can raise. A provider or pelvic floor therapist can help. Pain is not a sign that something is permanently wrong, and clinicians treat it as a symptom worth addressing.

The deeper version

The International Continence Society and International Urogynecological Association joint terminology report (Haylen and colleagues, Neurourology and Urodynamics, 2010) defines dyspareunia as persistent or recurrent genital pain associated with intercourse. Postpartum causes include perineal and injury, scarring, vaginal atrophy with lactation-related hypoestrogenism, pelvic floor hypertonicity, and psychological factors. Third- and fourth-degree tears, grouped as obstetric anal sphincter injuries, carry long-term morbidity including anal incontinence, dyspareunia, and pelvic floor dysfunction. ACOG Committee Opinion 736 (2018) recommends that postpartum visits address sexual health. Controversy concerns the role of routine pelvic floor physical therapy and the evidence for topical estrogen in breastfeeding women.

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Sources

  • Haylen BT et al. — An International Urogynecological Association (IUGA) / International Continence Society (ICS) joint report on the terminology for female pelvic floor dysfunction. Neurourology and Urodynamics, 2010
  • American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists — Committee Opinion 736: Optimizing Postpartum Care, 2018

The Mothership Topic Wiki is general information for mothers and the people who care for them. It is not medical, legal, or mental-health advice and does not create a provider relationship. Experiences posted by members are their own. In an emergency call 911. If you are having thoughts of harming yourself, call or text 988.