Having a child upsets the sex life of the parents, who experience an unrelated period after childbirth, but also sometimes a drop in libido and the frequency of intercourse.
- 81% of parents of young children have argued about parenting duties, according to this survey.
- 50% wanted to break up with their partner after the birth of their last child.
23% of couples wait three weeks to have vaginal sex after giving birth, according to a study wearing on the impact of the birth of a child on the sentimental and sexual life of parents carried out by Ifop and published this Thursday, December 1. For this survey, 1,001 women and men parents of children under 3 years old were interviewed.
22% of women accept the first sexual intercourse after childbirth without wanting to
Among them, 35% said they resumed sexual activity between three and six weeks after the birth of their baby and 32% waited more than seven weeks.
The sex life of young couples seems to be impacted for less time by the birth of a child. On average, the first sexual intercourse with vaginal penetration takes place 5.8 weeks after giving birth, compared to 8.4 weeks for parents aged 35 to 49.
But where does the initiative come from? It seems to be more on the men’s side because, according to the study, more than one in five women, or 22%, agreed to have vaginal intercourse after childbirth to please their partner, but without really want it.
In terms of frequency, once sex life resumes, it’s quite uneven between couples. In fact, 48% indicate that they make less love than before, but 28% observe, on the contrary, an increase in the frequency of their reports.
New parents: the libido drops more in women than in men
Low libido does not affect both sexes in the same way. 46% of men surveyed say they want to make love with their partner more than before the baby arrived, but only 33% of women make the same observation. In fact, 29% of them say that they have less desire for sex since giving birth, compared to 21% of men.
Among the reasons given when there is a decrease in the frequency of sexual intercourse, the main one is the fear of waking up the child, for 56% of parents. For low libido, 92% of mothers and 86% of fathers say they have less sexual energy due to fatigue and lack of sleep related to the arrival of the baby. Finally, 83% of women point out that their weight gain has also had an impact on their libido.
But all is obviously not negative when you have a child. The most important figure to remember is that 80% of parents under 50 say they are satisfied with their sex life.
