Stomach pain after sex is a common issue for females. If it occurs regularly or gets worse during or after sex, it’s best to see your gynecologist.
Your doctor will do a pelvic examination to check your uterus, tubes, and ovaries for issues that can cause pain. They may also refer you to a pelvic specialist for further testing.
Causes
There are a lot of things that can cause stomach pain after sex, but it is important to see your gynecologist if you have regular or severe abdominal pain after sexual activity. Your gynecologist will be able to tell you what the root cause is and design a treatment plan for you.
Fibroids are noncancerous growths that develop inside or on your uterus, and they can cause symptoms in 1 out of 3 women. Women with fibroids may experience painful menstrual cramps, including in their abdomen. These cramps can also be present during intercourse, and the discomfort can last longer than typical period cramping.
A uterine fibroid can also cause a condition called Asherman syndrome, which is when scar tissue forms in your uterus or cervix and causes them to stick together. The symptoms of Asherman syndrome can be similar to those of a uterine fibroid, and they can occur before, during, or after sexual activity.
Some infections can travel from the vagina to your uterus, fallopian tubes, or ovaries (such as pelvic inflammatory disease or urinary tract infections). If you have an infection in these areas and you have sex, it can irritate the area and make you feel pain during and after sexual activity.
Some STIs, like chlamydia and gonorrhea, can also cause lower abdominal pain during and after sexual activity. Getting regularly tested for these infections is important so you can treat them quickly and enjoy pain-free sex.
Symptoms
Many women will experience pain after sexual intercourse, and in most cases it’s nothing to worry about. However, if the pain is frequent or severe it’s worth contacting your GP to see what is causing it.
Stomach pain after sex is a common thing that can be caused by a variety of things, from simple physical reactions to more serious medical problems. It can also be a sign of an underlying condition such as pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), endometriosis, or ovarian cysts.
A common cause of stomach pain after sex is deep penetration. The uterus and cervix get knocked around quite vigorously during sex, and if the penetration isn’t deep enough the muscles may tighten and lead to pain. This is easily fixable by adjusting the depth of penetration during sex.
Other causes of stomach pain after sex include strong orgasms and abdominal straining. The muscle contractions that occur during orgasm can be similar to those that lead to period cramps and can cause pain in the lower abdomen and pelvis. If this is a regular occurrence, you might want to consider taking medication to alleviate the symptoms.
Abdominal pain after sex can also be a sign of pregnancy, and it’s important to rule this out before you go to the doctor. An ultrasound can confirm whether you’re pregnant or not, and if the pain is due to pregnancy it can be treated with over-the-counter painkillers.
Treatment
Aside from the obvious — cramps from holding a challenging position for sex — stomach pain after sex can be caused by a number of things, including infections and conditions like uterine fibroids. According to ob-gyns, any pain in the lower abdomen or pelvic area that occurs after sexual activity should be checked out, regardless of whether or not you’ve had anal or vaginal sex.
For example, anal sex positions such as missionary and doggy can cause pain during penetration because they allow for deeper thrusting than other positions, which puts pressure on the urethra and causes discomfort. But if you have a urinary tract infection (UTI), sex while infected can actually exacerbate the pain because it forces bacteria into your already irritated urethra.
Likewise, if you have a uterine fibroid — noncancerous growths in or on the uterus — the womb can tilt backward during and after sex, which can lead to pelvic pain. And if you have a condition called endometriosis, in which tissue that normally lines the womb grows outside of the womb and pelvic cavity (like on your ovaries or fallopian tubes), it can also irritate the lower abdominal area during and after sexual activity.
The good news is that most of the reasons your stomach hurts after sex are treatable, so don’t hesitate to see your ob-gyn. They can help you find the root of the problem and recommend a treatment plan.
Prevention
While it is not uncommon to feel lingering cramps after a climax, these should be temporary and go away with deep breaths and rest. If they don’t, you may be dealing with a more serious problem.
Those cramps are often caused by orgasm, which involves involuntary contraction of the muscles in the pelvic floor and abdomen. However, some women experience lingering pain after orgasm that does not go away, which is typically caused by the uterus itself. This is a sign of endometriosis, a condition that occurs when tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows outside the uterus, including on other organs in the body. The irritation this causes can result in scar-like tissue that sticks to the organs and causes severe pain.
Other causes of stomach pain after sex include infections and issues with the bladder or urinary tract. These can include bacterial or yeast infections, such as a UTI or pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). If you are having lower abdominal pain after sex, it is important to talk with your doctor to identify the underlying cause.
In many cases, a gynecologist can provide the diagnosis and treatment that you need to get back to enjoying sex. In other cases, it is just a matter of changing the depth of penetration or taking over-the-counter pain medication.