Is it safe to use sex toys during pregnancy? by Alison Bourne
If you like to use sex toys, there's no reason to stop now, as long as you're enjoying a healthy pregnancy. The key thing is to make sure that you keep your sex toys clean.
Keeping your sex toys clean will protect you against vaginal infections. Having sex a lot while you have a vaginal infection may increase your risk of having your baby too early. Here's how to keep your sex toys hygienic and safe:
clean them with warm, soapy water
rinse and dry them thoroughly
store them in a clean place
You may find it more sexually satisfying to use sex toys while you're pregnant. The increased blood flow to your genitals along with hormonal changes can make orgasms with a sex toy more intense.
Foreplay can be enhanced by sex toys too. If you go off full, penetrative sex during pregnancy, sex toys can help you maintain a loving intimacy with your partner. To help you reach orgasm, ask your partner to focus on your clitoris or your g-spot. Your g-spot is about an inch or so inside your vagina, on the front wall.
However, you shouldn't use sex toys to the full depth of your vagina if:
Your doctor has advised you not to have sex. This may happen if you have a low-lying placenta or if you had a weak cervix in a previous pregnancy.
You have been told that you could go into labour too early.
You have a vaginal infection.
Your waters have broken.
If you've experienced vaginal bleeding, talk to your midwife or GP before using sex toys, or having sex. A little bleeding after sex may be nothing to worry about, and may be caused by the cervix being irritated. But it's always best to be cautious. So tell your midwife or GP if you have any bleeding at any time.
It is especially important to clean toys thoroughly if you are using them in both your anus and vagina. Bacteria that live in your anus can cause an infection if they are transferred to your vagina. If you share sex toys with a partner who has an infection you are at risk of catching that infection, just as you are from intercourse.
Bear in mind that a vibrator is harder than a penis. So if your vagina feels more sensitive during pregnancy, tell your partner to be a little more gentle with you.
