A senior midwife and founder of Pregnancy School Ghana, Abena Okra has raised concerns at the rate at which some women get pregnant just three months after birth.
Experts say both virginal child birth and caesarean section have varying physical and psycological effects on women’s health Medically it is advisably for women to resume having sex 6 weeks after they have had a baby.
In an interview with TV3‘s Esi Benewa Nyame, madam Abena Okra indicated that the stresses of pregnancy meant that a woman needed to give herself enough time to heal physically, psychologically and emotionally before getting pregnant again. She said jumping into getting pregnant shortly after delivering has dire consequences on the reproductive health of women.
Pregnancy brings about many changes in women. It involves considerable hormonal as well as emotional stresses and the process of childbirth can traumatic for women.
But Abena Okra is worried Ghana is recording cases of women losing their lives through childbirth as a result of having sex immediately after child birth She said “at the end of nine (9) months, if a whole human being comes out of your body, that human baby is your blood, is your muscles, is your bones, your energy and your strength. “It is a very worrying situation now.
A lot of women are getting pregnant too soon after child birth.” She advised couples to explore other means of getting intimate to afford the woman time to completely heal “There are other ways to express intimacy and love.
You can touch, you can kiss, you can hug… Involve yourself in the house chores. It needs a lot of discipline and self control.” Frank Amoah, a taxi driver has three children, for him resuming sex with his wife was a major challenge.
He said although he waited for about 6 month, he had to be tactful about it anytime he wanted intimacy with his wife after delivery. Others also said it took them between 6 and 7months, to regain their sexual drive because they wanted to regain the energy lost and to build themselves psychologically.