Bleeding during sex is something that can make your pleasure go poof. Vaginal bleeding during sexual intercourse is something that every woman experiences once in a lifetime.
Postmenopausal women are more prone to this because of the dry vagina. Vaginal bleeding is also a sign of cervical cancer but less common for menstrual women.
Bleeding after first sex is because the hymen tears off. The sources of blood are urethra, labia, uterus, and vagina. Vaginal bleeding during and after intercourse happens to many women for different reasons.
Urethral bleeding after sex may be because of urinary tract infections. Bleeding after a week from sex can be because of implantation. Implantation is a sign of early pregnancy and is the process of egg embedment.
Reasons for vaginal bleeding during sex
The only two common reasons for bleeding during sex is untimely (or timely) period and when you lose virginity.
Vaginal bleeding after first sex is not an indicator of virginity. Some women may have their hymen torn due to activities like cycling and horse riding. Others may have the hymen intact even after first sex. Presence or absence of the hymen is not a sure sign of virginity. A period can start after sex, and that will be not because of it. If you have sex while on period or after it has ended, you may have some bleeding due to the rubbing.
1) Genitourinary Syndrome of Menopause
Atrophic vaginitis is the condition commonly found in postmenopausal women. The declining levels of estrogen lead to thinning of the vaginal wall. As a woman approaches perimenopause, she may have inflammation of the vagina. This is because of the declining hormones.
2) Urinary infections
Urinary infections can cause inflammation and rashes. UTI will lead to vaginal bleeding during sexual intercourse. Urinary tract infections can be easily treated with antibiotics course. Pain while urinating and pus coming along is a sign of UTI.
3) Postpartum vaginal dryness
After pregnancy the vagina becomes dry. During pregnancy, progesterone increases the amount of cervical discharge. This keeps the vagina moist and mucus plug intact for protection of baby.
4) Sjogren’s Syndrome
It is an immunological disorder that suppresses the glandular activity. Reduced productions of moisture by glands are consequences of Sjogren’s syndrome. Vaginal dryness leads to bleeding during sex.
5) Incomplete arousal
When you don’t have enough foreplay and immediately start off with the act you can have bleeding during intercourse. Arousal is essential for secretion from the glands. Foreplay can last for a few minutes to hours, and it is not merely for showing love. Physiological makeup of the body demands enough foreplay.
6) Douching or female hygiene products
Most feminine intimate hygiene products have scents. Itching and burning after use of such products can cause allergies. Postcoital bleeding is because of rashes rupturing due to friction. Vaginal bleeding during sexual intercourse can be because of internal sores due to constant douching. Douching is not a good practice.
7) Medications and Radiation therapy
Some drugs like antidepressants and birth control pills can cause bleeding during sex. They affect the activity of glands and reduce vaginal discharge. Radiation and chemotherapy lead to vaginal dryness and cause coital bleeding.
8) Breastfeeding
During breastfeeding the nursing mother has high levels of prolactin hormone. Prolactin exerts negative feedback for other hormones. Postpartum vaginal dryness is common till mother continues breastfeeding. The cyclic menstrual changes of cervical mucus don’t take place because of temporary suspension. The vagina remains dry and so bleeding during sexual intercourse is more common.
9) Vaginal Tearing
During sex penis hitting the vagina can cause tears and scars. They can bleed as the endometrial lining has many blood vessels. When the period is approaching, sex can cause bleeding.
10) Polyps
Polyps are benign growths that grow in the uterus. A polyp near the vagina can burst or twist during sex. This causes immense pain and bleeding after sex. Polyps need surgical removal or other procedures.
11) Cancer or removal of ovaries
Birth control and being overweight put a woman at higher risk for cervical cancer. Long-term infection by human papillomavirus can also cause cancer. When bleeding after sex means cancer? If vaginal bleeding after sex happens along with other symptoms like cramps and vomiting, then it is a sign of cancer. A woman above 40 years of age and undergoing Perimenopause is more prone to this condition.
12) Menopause
After menopause bleeding from the vagina during sex can be alarming. But it is more common. About 63% of women in the postmenopausal stage bleed during sex. The muscles lose their flexibility and the walls of the vagina become thin. There may be inflammation of the cervical region causing bleeding while having sex.
13) Trauma
Mental or abnormal physical strain during sex can cause trauma like symptoms. Cases of rape and abuse have vaginal bleeding during coitus. Similarly, inserting a sex toy inside incorrectly can cause vaginal bleeding during sexual intercourse.
14) Vaginitis or Cervicitis
Inflammation of the vagina or cervix makes the area very sensitive. Vaginitis can cause bleeding during normal sex. Rough sex aggravates cervix inflammation and leads to blood oozing from the vagina during sex.
15) Cervical ectropion
When the cervical tissue comes near the opening it exposes and blocks the passage. This is a reason for vaginal bleeding during sexual intercourse in some cases.
What does blood during intercourse mean if it not period?
Blood during intercourse could be because of any of the above reasons. The only physiological reason for blood during sex is when you have it for the first time. Subsequent acts of intimacy don’t lead to bleeding.
What can provoke vaginal bleeding during sex?
Sex during pregnancy is allowable and has no risk of hurting the baby. Bit interruption of pregnancy while having sex can provoke vaginal bleeding. Doctors advise abstaining from sex during implantation bleeding. The egg embedment process requires the woman to be at rest both mentally and physically. Ontological conditions rarely allow pregnancy, but they can cause bleeding during sex.
Treatments for vaginal bleeding during sexual intercourse
- Antibiotics treat infections, and anti-inflammatory drugs cure inflamed regions.
- Cryosurgery: Frozen cells and tissues used for surgery can treat the causes of coital bleeding.
- Oral hormone therapy: Estrogen-progestin is the hormonal replacement given for bleeding during coitus.
- Topical estrogen therapy: Estrogen ring is a circular structure placed in the vagina that yields estrogen for 90 days. Estrogen causes thickening of the endometrial lining. Estrogen cream and suppositories can also supplement estrogen levels.
- Using lubricants reduces the burning and friction during sex.
- Changing the position of sex can also prevent bleeding during sex.
