By Audrey Chu
This blog is a summary of our published article:
Fitzpatrick, E. T., Rosen, N. O., & Dawson, S. J. (2023). What to expect when you’re expecting: Perinatal sexual education is linked with couples’ sexual well-being in pregnancy and the postpartum. Journal of Sex Research, 60(9), 1269-1282. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2023.2193570
The period from pregnancy up to 1 year postpartum (after birth) is called the perinatal period [1]. This is an exciting time that can also introduce new challenges to couples, which may include issues regarding the sexual well-being of both partners [1].
Sexual well-being involves measures of sexual frequency, sexual desire, sexual satisfaction, and sexual distress [1]. Previous studies have found that both birthing and non-birthing parents report problems in their sexual well-being, beginning during pregnancy, and that may worsen during the postpartum period [2;3;4;5].
Despite the prevalence of issues with sexual well-being in expecting or new parents, very few report receiving information or education about sexual challenges that may arise during the perinatal period from healthcare professionals [6;7,8]. The lack of sexual education from healthcare professionals during this period may lead to gaps in knowledge, harmful misinformation from non-medical sources, and increased fears, negative attitudes, or concerns regarding sexual activity, which may ultimately impact measures of sexual well-being in these couples [1].
Photo by PurpleChicken on Pixabay
What did we want to know?
We explored four different measures in this study: the amount of sexual education these couples received during the perinatal period, potential gaps between desired and received information, barriers to information, and how the amount of sexual health information they received impacted their sexual well-being [1].
What did we do?
We recruited 116 first-time pregnant couples during all stages of pregnancy and 131 new parent couples within 12 months postpartum across Canada and the United States. The participants were tasked with completing online surveys independently of their partners. In the surveys, participants were asked questions regarding the quantity and content of perinatal sexual health information received (including gaps and barriers), as well as questions used to measure their reported sexual well-being (i.e., sexual frequency, sexual satisfaction, sexual desire, and sexual distress).
What did we find?
Results for pregnant couples:
- Two-thirds of birthing parents and almost half of non-birthing parents reported having sought education but received little to no sexual education information specific to the perinatal period
- 37% of birthing and 43% of non-birthing parents reported getting sexual education information from healthcare professionals
- Participants reported using the internet, apps, partners, friends, and books for information
- Information about safety during sexual activity throughout pregnancy was the most commonly sought-after information
Results for postpartum couples:
- 78% of birthing and 63% of non-birthing parents reported having sought/received little to no sexual education information specific to the perinatal or the postpartum period
- 77% of birthing and 68% of non-birthing parents reported getting sexual education information from healthcare professionals
- Information about when to resume sexual activity, contraception, and information regarding the vagina and perineum were the most sought-after topics for birthing parents
- Changes to the birthing parent’s sexuality, the normalcy of these changes, and information regarding the vagina and perineum were the most sought-after topics for the non-birthing parents
Results across both groups:
- Birthing parents were more likely to seek out sexual education information than non-birthing parents
- Across expecting and new parents samples both partners expressed wanting a breadth of sexual education information during this time
- Across the pregnant and postpartum couples, both the birthing and non-birthing parents reported that discussing sexual concerns with healthcare professionals was neither easy nor difficult
- In general, both pregnant and postpartum couples who sought/received more sexual education information reported better sexual well-being across the four measures
What does this mean?
Our study highlighted that expectant and new parents accessed and received very minimal perinatal sexual education, despite expressing a desire for this information. Our findings show that when birthing and non-birthing parents received more sexual education during this time they reported greater sexual satisfaction, frequency, and desire, as well as reduced sexual distress, proving the hypothesized importance of sexual education during the perinatal period. Our findings suggest that the current gap in sexual education for parents in the perinatal period should be addressed by healthcare professionals so parents have a comprehensive understanding of what changes may occur during this time and how these changes may affect their sexual well-being.
Photo by Elf-Moondance on Pixabay
References
[1] Fitzpatrick, E. T., Rosen, N. O., & Dawson, S. J. (2023). What to expect when you’re expecting: Perinatal sexual education is linked with couples’ sexual well-being in pregnancy and the postpartum. Journal of Sex Research, 60(9), 1269-1282. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2023.2193570 https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2023.2193570
[2] Fitzpatrick, E. T., Kolbuszewska, M. T., & Dawson, S. J. (2021). Perinatal sexual dysfunction: The importance of the interpersonal context. Current Sexual Health Reports, 13(3), 55–65. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11930-021-00313-8
[3] Dawson, S. J., Leonhardt, N. D., Impett, E. A., & Rosen, N. O. (2021). Associations between postpartum depressive symptoms and couples’ sexual function and sexual distress trajectories across the transition to parenthood. Annals of Behavior Medicine, 55(9), 879–891. https://doi.org/10.1093/abm/kaaa117
[4] Rosen, N. O., Dawson, S. J., Leonhardt, N. D., Vannier, S. A., & Impett, E. A. (2021). Trajectories of sexual well-being among couples in the transition to parenthood. Journal of Family Psychology, 35(4), 523–533. https://doi.org/10.1037/fam0000689
[5] Schwenck, G. C., Dawson, S. J., Muise, A., & Rosen, N. O. (2020). A comparison of the sexual well-being of new parents with community couples. Journal of Sexual Medicine, 17(11), 2156–2167. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsxm.2020.08.011
[6] Barrett, G., Pendry, E., Peacock, J., Victor, C., Thakar, R., & Manyonda, I. (2000). Women’s sexual health after childbirth. BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, 107(2), 186–195. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-0528.2000.tb11689.x
[7] Bartellas, E., Crane, J. M. G., Daley, M., Bennett, K. A., & Hutchens, D. (2000). Sexuality and sexual activity in pregnancy. BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, 107(8), 964–968. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-0528.2000.tb10397.x
[8] Woolhouse, H., McDonald, E., & Brown, S. J. (2014). Changes to sexual and intimate relationships in the postnatal period: Women’s experiences with health professionals. Australian Journal of Primary Health, 20(3), 298. https://doi.org/10.1071/PY13001
