Why you may have Vaginal Bleeding After Sex

By Yejide Gbenga-Ogundare

Some women see blood on the sheets after s3x when they are not having their monthly flow and aren’t supposed to get it anytime soon and this is a cause for concern. Vaginal bleeding after s3x can be scary but it’s also fairly common among a population of menstruating women.

While there is probably no cause for concern, it can result from an infection and in rare cases; it is a sign of cervical cancer.

The most common cause of vaginal bleeding after s3x is usually from the cervix, that is, the narrow, tube-like end of your uterus that opens into the vagina. One of those causes is cervical inflammation or cervicitis which can be ongoing and totally harmless or due to a s3xually transmitted infection that needs treatment; chlamydia or gonorrhea.

Another common factor for bleeding after s3x is cervical polyps which are usually small, about one to two centimeters that often appear on the opening of the cervix; most aren’t cancerous and can be removed by a doctor.

Other causes of vaginal bleeding after s3x include friction during s3x or not enough lubrication, normal uterine bleeding if you’re just beginning your period or if it’s just ended, cervical or vaginal infection, precancerous cervical spot, genital sores caused by herpes or another condition, cervical ectropion (when the inner lining of the cervix pokes through the cervical opening and grows on the vaginal side of the cervix), pelvic organ prolapse (when pelvic organs, like the bladder or uterus, protrude or fall just beyond the vaginal walls) and cancer of the cervix, vagina, or uterus.

There are also factors that lead to vaginal bleeding and it is usually as a result of dryness caused by factors like menopause, breastfeeding, childbirth, cold, allergy and anti-estrogen medications, cancer therapy and its effect on your ovaries, douching and Sjögren’s syndrome.

And while many of these causes don’t need treatment and are harmless, sometimes vaginal bleeding after sex can be a sign of a more serious problem. If you have some minor bleeding every once in a while, chances are everything is fine. But the only way to know for sure is to see your doctor for a physical examination.

If the bleeding happens right before you get your period or within a few days after it ends and it doesn’t happen again, you can hold off on making that appointment. You can also probably hold off if you recently had a pelvic exam and Pap smear and got a clean bill of health.

If you’re postmenopausal, any bleeding after s3x isn’t normal. See your doctor to rule out cervical cancer, endometrial cancer, and other issues.

Since there’s no one cause of bleeding after sex, there’s no single treatment but various options: vaginal lubricants and moisturizers, medication for sexually transmitted infections, estrogen therapy, cervical cancer treatment (surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation) and polyp removal.

Bleeding after s3x may stop on its own; a recent study found that just over half of women who had bleeding after s3x reported that it cleared up on its own within two years.

You can prevent bleeding after s3x by making some lifestyle changes to lower your risk: use a lubricant before and during s3x, wait a bit longer after your period ends to start having s3x again, have your doctor remove any cervical polyps or treat cervical infections, have more foreplay before penetration and try less aggressive s3x.