Discomfort, fear of hurting the baby, varied sexual practices… A study paints a portrait of the sexual life of pregnant women in Taiwan.
For fear of harming the baby, many women interrupt their sexuality during pregnancy. But what about other cultures? A study conducted in Taiwan on 62 pregnant women appeared in the December 2013 edition of Sexual Medicine. It reviews the sexual behavior of Taiwanese couples after the announcement of a pregnancy.
Put your sexuality on hold
Chinese medicine, notes this study, advocates abstinence in case of pregnancy. “Restrictions during pregnancy are intended to protect the child from ‘malignant influences’ and to avoid complications associated with pregnancy,” the authors write. They even quote an extract from the bible about women de Xiau (1689): “If a woman is pregnant, her man is not allowed to have sexual intercourse with her. »
To check whether these traditional principles are applied, researchers from the University of Science and Technology in Taiwan questioned pregnant women about their sexual habits. During the 1st and 2nd quarters, few changes were reported. They are however half to interrupt their sexuality during the first three months of their pregnancy. The frequency of intercourse drops sharply in the 3rd trimester, as well as sexual desire and satisfaction. Only 9% of the women questioned maintained an equal activity throughout the 9 months of gestation.
Other sexual practices
Of the women who put their sexuality on hold, most chose it on their own (65%). The spouse is the second to take part in this decision, in agreement with the woman (15%) or at the origin of this one (13%). The authors of the study point to a serious problem of sex education. The vast majority of parturients get their information from the Internet (38%) and from young mothers (42%). Immediately after that come pregnancy books and manuals. “These results encourage the provision of sexuality education to newlyweds and discussions around issues of sex during pregnancy,” say the authors of the study.
The majority of pregnant women want to maintain an intimate relationship with their spouse. Some choose to maintain usual practices but report practicing less deep penetration or having more gentle intercourse. Many also turn to other sexual practices, excluding vaginal sex from the outset. The majority of these women resort to manual sex (massages, masturbation). Only a minority (3%) turn to anal sex. The third most common practice is the solitary masturbation of the spouse.
Fears and discomfort
But sexual intercourse during pregnancy is not synonymous with comfort, underlines this study. Pregnant women surveyed point to several downsides to intercourse. In first place comes fatigue (35%), followed by uterine contractions (29%) and physical discomfort (8%). Other reasons why they prefer to interrupt their sexual activity: the fear of harming the baby or triggering premature labor.
However, the authors of the study point out its limitations. It was carried out only within a population of Chinese culture, where abstinence dominates. In any case, these results cannot be generalized to the world population. Moreover, as the conclusion of the report recalls, “Chinese medicine is generally practiced in different ways in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. »