A study conducted in Portugal examined how the sexual well-being of first-time parents changes during and after pregnancy. The researchers found that while fathers’ sexual function usually remains consistent during this period, mothers’ sexual function often decreases from pregnancy until 6 months after giving birth. Overall, 85% of new parents maintained regular sexual functioning after having a child. However, 15% of mothers experienced significant and ongoing issues with sexual function and distress. The study was published in Archives of Sexual Behavior.
Sexual well-being is as a state of physical, emotional, and social well-being in relation to sexuality. It has two major aspects: the experience of unimpaired sexual function (being able to normally experience sexual desire, arousal, orgasm, and the absence of pain) and the lack of sexual distress (the lack of negative emotions associated with one’s sexual life). Sexual well-being is one of the most important components of the quality of a romantic relationship. Better sexual well-being is also linked to better mental and physical health.
There are certain periods in life when one’s sexual well-being is highly vulnerable. One such period is one’s own or romantic partner’s pregnancy. This is especially the case with the first pregnancy. Studies have indicated that the time from the start of the pregnancy to 12 months after the birth of the child is a period when the new parent couples experience marked changes in their social and biological functioning that impact their sexuality.
Study author Inês M. Tavares and her colleagues wanted to better understand the sexual functioning of romantic couples and the distress they might experience as they transition to parenthood. They were interested in knowing whether there are some typical trajectories couples’ sexual functioning goes through during this period.
The researchers wanted to understand the trajectories of sexual functioning and distress experienced by couples during this period. They hypothesized that various factors such as biomedical risks, fatigue, stress, depression, anxiety, attitudes towards sex during pregnancy, relationship quality, and perceived partner support could affect sexual function and distress over time.
The participants in the study were 257 Portuguese couples expecting their first child. Participants were in a relationship for 7 on average, their ages ranged between 19 and 47 years, 68% of the couples were married, while the rest were dating. They were surveyed at four different times: during the 20th week of pregnancy, the 32nd week of pregnancy, 3 months after giving birth, and 6 months after giving birth.
Both mothers and fathers completed assessments of their sexual function and sexual distress independently. Additionally, they answered questions about biomedical factors related to labor and delivery and reported on their energy levels, anxiety, depressive symptoms, attitudes towards sex during pregnancy, relationship quality, and perceived social support.
The results showed that mothers’ sexual function declined from pregnancy to 6 months after giving birth, while fathers’ sexual function remained stable during this time. The researchers identified two groups of couples based on sexual function changes: the High Sexual Function group (85% of couples) had relatively high sexual function levels throughout the transition, while the Discrepant Sexual Function-Mothers Clinically Low group (15% of couples) experienced sexual discrepancy between partners, with mothers showing significantly lower sexual function levels.
In terms of sexual distress, mothers’ distress increased from pregnancy to 6 months after giving birth, while fathers’ distress remained stable. The researchers identified three groups based on sexual distress changes: the Low Sexual Distress group (77% of couples) reported low levels of distress throughout the transition, the Moderate Sexual Distress group (12% of couples) experienced moderate distress levels that reached clinical levels at 6 months after giving birth, and the Discrepant Sexual Distress-Mothers Clinically Elevated group (11% of couples) had high sexual distress in mothers but not fathers.
The study’s authors concluded that the majority of couples experienced high sexual function and low sexual distress during the transition to parenthood. However, a significant minority of couples faced challenges, with some mothers experiencing clinically significant low sexual function and high sexual distress. “We also identified critical time-points (i.e., around 20-week pregnancy and 3 months postpartum) to assess risk and protective biomedical and psychosocial factors to screen those individuals and couples at heightened risk for sexual dysfunction across this transition,” the study authors wrote.
The study sheds light on changes in sexual functioning in the period when romantic partners become parents for the first time. However, it also has limitations that need to be taken into account. Notably, the sexual function and distress were self-assessed by participants. There was no clinical assessment. Additionally, the scoring system used excluded people who reported not being sexually active in the previous month from the analyses. This means that the findings only refer to couples that were sexually active throughout the period of transition to parenthood.
The paper, “Biopsychosocial Predictors of Couples’ Trajectories of Sexual Function and Sexual Distress Across the Transition to Parenthood”, was authored by Inês M. Tavares, Natalie O. Rosen, Julia R. Heiman, and Pedro J. Nobre.