Why Sex Feels Hard After Trauma

If you’ve experienced trauma, especially trauma that involved your body, closeness, or trust, you may notice that sex does not feel the way you expected it to.

You might care deeply about your partner and want to feel connected, but when it comes to physical intimacy, something feels off. You may feel tense, disconnected, overwhelmed, or simply not interested at all. For some people, their body seems to “shut down.” For others, it can feel like too much, too quickly.