The euphoric bliss that many people feel right after orgasm can slip away pretty fast if you start spot-bleeding immediately following the event. Not only can it obviously put the brakes on your love life pretty quickly, but it could also be a sign of deeply rooted health issues.
However, worry not, because most of the time, the causes behind the bleeding are not very serious and can be treated easily.
Bleeding after orgasm can be caused due to many different factors and conditions. Usually, it’s caused by injuries or infections. This can be easily treated with proper medication.
So let’s get into everything you need to know about bleeding after orgasm.
Well, to start with, the causes can be an injury to the reproductive parts, infections, cervical abnormalities, PCOS, or serious complications like cancer.
But to understand which one exactly is the cause might be is the most important step. After a proper diagnosis, a suitable treatment is usually enough to get rid of the problem entirely.
So let us dive into this article to get a better idea about postcoital bleeding.
Table of Content
What Are the Causes of Bleeding After Orgasm?
Often times there is a simple explanation behind postcoital bleeding or bleeding after orgasm. In most cases, the bleeding has something to do with the menstrual cycle. Orgasms cause uterine contractions. If you are currently having or recently had your period, the contractions of the uterus may force out some of the blood in your uterine tract, which might appear as spot bleeding.
But studies show that at least 9% of all women suffer from bleeding after orgasm that may stem from a non-menstrual cause. In this case, a proper diagnosis is required to come up with the best course of action.
Firstly, it is important to note what you’re experiencing along with bleeding after orgasm. Additional information like this is very important for a good diagnosis and appropriate treatments.
So let’s take a look at the symptoms that may be associated with postcoital bleeding.
Symptoms of Abnormal Bleeding After Orgasm
Bleeding spotted within a few days before or after your periods could be considered pretty normal.
However, if you are not anywhere near your period timings, bleeding after orgasm can indicate underlying problems. Research suggests that 30% of women who suffer from postcoital bleeding also suffer from other forms of abnormal uterine bleeding.
The bleeding can continue from up to a few hours to even a few days. Often, there are some other symptoms along with bleeding.
These symptoms include:
- Vaginal pain or dryness
- Burning or itchy sensations
- Skin reddening around the genitals
- Pain during intercourse
- Abnormal discharge from the vagina
8 Common Reasons behind Bleeding after Orgasm:
Bleeding after orgasm can be caused due to many different factors and conditions. Usually, it’s caused by injuries or infections. This can be easily treated with proper medication.
But in some cases, postcoital bleeding may be a symptom of uterine disorders or cancer. In these cases, treatment may be more complex like specialized therapy or surgery.
Here are the 8 common causes of bleeding after orgasm:
1. Injuries
Often, it is seen, the first event of sexual intercourse is followed by bleeding. This bleeding is caused due to breaking of the hymen. The hymen is a small flap of the vaginal skin.
Additionally, following intercourse, small grazes and cuts could be introduced on the surfaces of the reproductive organ. This is due to the friction during intercourse. Therefore, often, vigorous intercourse and sexual violence are highly associated with bleeding. The wounds introduced in the reproductive organs might heal on their own. But sometimes, it does require medical attention.
Furthermore, childbirth can be the cause of severe cuts in the vaginal tissues which makes the vaginal tissues more prone to bleeding after orgasm with or without external objects.
2. Sexually Transmitted Diseases
There are several kinds of sexually transmitted diseases such as gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, trichomoniasis, etc. Genital herpes leads to the formation of open sores around the genitals that cause bleeding.
Moreover, gonorrhea can lead to inflammation of the cervical area. It also increases the chances of cervicitis and vulvovaginitis. Cervicitis is a form of infection of the cervix.
Whereas vulvovaginitis is an infection relating to the vulvar and vaginal area. All of these conditions might lead to bleeding issues after sex.
3. Cervical Abnormalities
The cervix is an integral component of the reproductive system that connects the uterus and the vagina. Several underlying health issues can lead to abnormal growth of the cervical cells.
Cervical Polyps
Polyps are masses of tissue that are rich in blood vessels. Therefore, they bleed very easily.
Benign polyps which are not cancerous, grow on the inner lining of the cervical structure. Polyp formation can lead to occasional bleeding and pain.
Cervical Ectropion
The inner cervical canal is covered with extremely sensitive cells. However, the outer cervical cells are more resistant to different kinds of friction.
Cervical ectropion describes a condition when the inner cervical cells begin to grow on the outer surface of the cervix. As a result, exposing the extremely fragile cells on the top. It causes the cervix to become more prone to bleeding.
4. Uterine Fibroids
Fibroids in the uterus are benign tumors. According to WHO, it has been reported that currently, 40 to 80% of childbearing women around the world are suffering from uterine fibroids.
The uterine fibroids can cause vaginal bleeding after orgasm, pain in the pelvic region, unbearable pain during the periods, and irregular periods.
After the diagnosis, surgical procedures such as loop electrosurgical excision can help to remove the abnormal masses of tissues.
Your doctor may suggest the removal of the fibroids after properly assessing your situation. Fibroid removal is often accompanied by rapid weight gain. However, you can look for many available useful ways how to lose weight after fibroid removal if you need.
5. Endometriosis
This is another condition of the uterus. Here, the inner lining or more commonly called the endometrium of the uterus begins to grow massively on the outer surface.
This further leads to the growth of endometrial tissues on the nearby reproductive organs. Hence, intolerable pain, fertility issues, and bleeding right after orgasm.
6. Polycystic Ovary Syndrome
Polycystic ovary syndrome is more commonly known as PCOS. PCOS is a medical condition that is caused due to an imbalance of hormones.
PCOS is responsible for difficulty during sex, menstrual cramps, and irregular periods. In addition, another common symptom of PCOS includes bleeding after sexual arousal. The stimulation causes the uterus to become softened and as a result, it bleeds easily.
It is also to be mentioned that individuals suffering from PCOS get more prone to bleeding after intercourse due to the intake of various medications.
Blood-thinning agents, contraceptive pills, and aspirin are a few such medications to mention. Although PCOS causes abnormal period cycles, there are several suggestions on how to have normal periods in PCOS. The good thing is several of the suggestions have been proven useful.
7. Vaginal Dryness
Dryness in the vaginal tissue areas makes bleeding after orgasm multiple times more likely. Some common causes of dryness of the vagina include:
- Atrophic Vaginitis– This particular medical condition causes the vaginal elasticity, thickness, and moisture or lubrication of the vagina to decrease severely. The lubrication decreases due to less production of mucus in the reproductive tracts. As a result, increasing the chances of friction during orgasm, and finally leads to bleeding.
- Lack of Estrogen– The ovaries are the main organs responsible for the production of estrogen. The removal of ovaries (hysterectomy) or accidental injury to the ovaries might disrupt estrogen production. This will cause the vaginal dryness to elevate, increasing the chances of bleeding. Furthermore, certain medications can cause reduced levels of estrogen produced. Some anti-depressants, anti-flu medications are a few to mention.
- Synthetic Chemicals– Chemicals used in body bath products, detergents, and condoms can also cause itchiness and drying out of the vaginal walls.
- Douching– Frequent douching can also lead to vaginal dryness and subsequent bleeding.
8. Cancer
Among all the mentioned possible reasons for bleeding during or after intercourse, cancer is the most aggressive.
Cancers of the cervix, vagina, and uterus are common causes of bleeding after orgasm. The growth of tumors causes the accumulation of additional blood vessels in a particular area. The dense network of vessels can rupture easily leading to the bleed.
What Are The Other Possible Risk Factors?
Even though bleeding after orgasm is a fairly common problem, there are a few important risk factors that may predispose a person to this problem.
Some common risk factors of bleeding after sexual activity includes:
- Family history of reproductive disorders
- Being in the menopausal stage
- Performing sexual activities without protection, such as using condoms during sex
- Anxiousness during orgasm
- Lack of experience
- Blood clotting disorders
- Diabetes
- Abnormally elevated blood pressure
When to See a Doctor?
If your bleeding continues for more than a week it is usually advised to seek medical attention.
Furthermore, if your bleeding is accompanied by high fever, severe abdominal pain, lethargy, lightheadedness, it is important to make sure you seek emergency medical attention.
To treat vaginal dryness caused due to atrophic vaginitis, it is suggested to lubricate the genital areas before having intercourse.
How to Diagnose the Cause of Bleeding after Orgasm?
As mentioned earlier, a clear diagnosis is the most important step in treating postcoital bleeding. To pinpoint the exact cause of this problem, your doctor may suggest a number of tests.
To begin with, medical personnel will first ask a few individual and family-related questions to assess your medical history. A full physical examination is also usually carried out. Furthermore, other tests might as well be suggested to reach a final verdict.
- Test for infections:
Samples collected from your vagina can be cultured. It will ensure if there is the presence of any micro-organism that is responsible for the various sexually transmitted diseases.
- Ultrasound:
A transvaginal ultrasound can help to get a view of the organs present in the pelvic region.
- Pap smear test:
A Pap test is done where a sample of your cervical cell will be collected using a swab. The sample is tested for any infectious agents. It also detects the growth of benign or cancerous tumors.
- Colposcopy:
A colposcopy test is similar to a pap smear test but relatively takes a bit more time. It uses a colposcope, which is a magnifying device that helps to get a clearer look at the cervix. Henceforth, makes it easy to find any structural abnormalities. A small part of the tissue might be sent for lab analysis for further confirmation.
- Biopsy of tumors:
The biopsy of the sample collected from any abnormal growth in the uterus, cervix, or vagina tells us if the growth is cancerous or non-cancerous. It also helps us diagnose the different polyp cells found in the uterus or cervix.
- Pregnancy test:
To confirm that post-sexual bleeding is not accompanied by pregnancy, it is usually better to check the pregnancy test results before moving on to any further treatments.
What Are The Possible Treatments?
Bleeding after sex is not a result of a single cause. It has been connected with several diseases. Therefore, it is obvious that it has a variety of treatment options that are specific to each of the complications.
Lubricants and Estrogen Treatment
To treat vaginal dryness caused due to atrophic vaginitis, it is suggested to lubricate the genital areas before having intercourse.
Most of the pharmacies near you offer a wide range of lubricating medications. Estrogen is also prescribed to a few of the patients. Patients that have undergone hysterectomy or patients that are postmenopausal are a few to mention.
Estrogen can reduce the extent of your vaginal dryness. It is available in several forms, such as oral estrogen pills or cream versions of estrogen.
The cream versions of estrogen are usually applied to the inner linings of the vagina.
The different kinds of infections either due to sexually transmitted diseases or unusual growth of microorganisms are usually treated with a wide range of antibiotics and antivirals.
Antibiotics help eliminate bacterial infections whereas antiviral medications help clear up infections caused by viruses.
Surgical Interventions
A pap smear, colposcopy, and biopsy help us determine if an additional growth in the reproductive tract is benign or cancerous.
After the diagnosis, surgical procedures such as loop electrosurgical excision can help to remove the abnormal masses of tissues.
Your gynecologic oncologist is usually responsible to help you out with these issues. In addition, polyps that are not too large can be removed without very invasive surgical procedures. However, larger masses of polyps do require hospital setups for operational procedures.
A Few Tips:
These few suggestions might be helpful to deal with bleeding after sex:
- To prevent bleeding, it is usually advised to wait for a little longer after your period ends.
- Making sure to use lubricants is a good idea.
- In addition, avoid using scented products for the genital areas.
- Make sure to use a condom every time
- Talk with your partner about anxieties that can prevent proper arousal.
- Stay hydrated throughout the day. This will help you solve numerous other health complications along with this particular one.
- Herbal supplements, omega supplements, and vitamin E have also been associated to reduce vaginal dryness.
FAQs
How long does it bleed after orgasm?
It is common to bleed lightly for an hour or a whole day after intercourse. However, bleeding that continues for more than a few days in individuals is advised to seek medical guidance.
Is bleeding after orgasm associated with pregnancy?
Bleeding after orgasm is not always an indication of early pregnancy. However, light spotting is seen in some individuals as an early sign of pregnancy.
Do sexually transmitted diseases cause bleeding after intercourse?
Yes, sexually transmitted diseases can be one of the few possible reasons. Consult your doctor if you are suffering from any kind of STDS such as chlamydia, gonorrhea, etc. and suffer from bleeding simultaneously
Is bleeding after intercourse associated with IUD?
IUD is not directly related to causing bleeding after intercourse. However, the placement of an IUD can cause light spotting even after several months.
Parting Words
In a nutshell, it is safe to conclude that the root cause of bleeding after orgasm is not always a very untreatable medical condition. Most of the time it is very much treatable and not something you should worry about.
However, it should be noted that it might be caused due to medical conditions that need to be addressed by qualified healthcare professionals. If cannot solve the problem of bleeding after orgasm by yourself, consult your gynecologist whenever you spot bleeding.
Hope this article helped you out. Best of luck on your journey to better health and pleasurable love life.
