Check out this interesting section from the British TV show “Embarrassing Bodies” where a patient is diagnosed with Phimosis (technically I would say he is suffering from para-phimosis but then again I’m not a Doctor!). I would suggest this is not a very severe case, the main problem for this gentleman is that after intercourse he has to “fiddle about” to get his foreskin back into place.

Some more details here:

http://www.channel4embarrassingillnesses.com/conditions/phimosis/

In the video they do not cover non-surgical options at all but at least the summary text mentions using topical steroid creams. However it is interesting so see the actual problem demonstrated and the chosen treatment which is Preputioplasty which involves a small incision to loosen the foreskin sufficiently. For people suffering from Frenulum Breve there is a similar treatment called Frenuoplasty which lengthens the frenulum.

Foreskin Purpose:
The purpose of the foreskin is to protect the glans or head of the penis which is very sensitive. The inner part of the foreskin is also very sensitive to stimulation and it facilitates a natural sliding motion during sexual intercourse which increases stimulation and sexual pleasure for both partners. The sliding mechanism is described in the image below:

How the foreskin functions during intercourse:
The foreskin itself generally accounts for 50% or more of penile skin. During intercourse penetration the foreskin is normally pushed back and effectively inverts as described in parts 1, 2, 3 & 4 for the image series below. As the penis is pulled back from the vagina the foreskin itself pulls back over the head of the penis as described in parts 5 & 6.

In the case of true phimosis the foreskin is too tight to retract behind the glans while with paraphimosis although the foreskin may retract it is too tight to return back over and gets trapped behind the glans.

In the majority of cases tight foreskins can be loosened sufficiently after a few weeks of persistent stretching.

After being performed persistently this exercise will also help to avoid Paraphimosis which is where the retracted foreskin gets trapped below the glans of the penis which can be both painful and distressing.

When I think back to my early sexual encounters with girls I didn’t necessarily realize I had a specific problem. I suspected there might be something wrong but I had no information and given that I was just starting out I assumed maybe this was the norm for young guys, maybe I had a low pain threshold, perhaps it was some form of erectile dysfunction or maybe somehow it was even my first girlfriends problem and not mine. Looking back I never really knew how the foreskin was supposed to work in the first place, I think if I’d been more aware of this then I would have dealt with things so much sooner instead of waiting more than 10 years to find a solution.

I would notice a sharp pain as my foreskin was being pushed back when trying to enter, I would persist but soon the pain was enough for me to lose my erection. I rarely managed to have penetrative sex and even when I did it would be a traumatic experience, I would suffer from paraphimosis (having the foreskin trapped behind the swelling head of the penis) which scared the living crap out of me, especially in the early days.

As I by now associated sexual intercourse with pain and trauma I would become increasingly nervous with girls and even struggle to get or maintain an erection once things progressed to the bedroom. But while I knew there must be some problem I didn’t do anything to address it. It is not something you want to discuss with your friends or family and I was petrified at the thought of going to a doctor and even more petrified at the thought of circumcision, the only obvious solution I could think of.

Eventually I found a partial solution of sorts, some brands of condoms where tight enough to hold my foreskin in place throughout intercourse, so less stretch and less pain. Relative to where I was before this was a huge step for me,  as about six times out of ten I could have relatively painless penetrative sex even if  I often did not ejaculate because of a general lack of sensitivity brought about by the very limited movement in my foreskin. It was a hit and miss solution.

However the condition still had a continuing serious negative affect on my life caused a lot of mental anguish.  The questions were always there. Can I (will I ever) be able to keep a relationship going? Will I ever be able to have kids?

Eventually I became determined to deal with the problem once and for all so I checked around for information, eventually I found out about some foreskin stretching techniques. I didn’t hold out much hope but after just a week of persistent stretching I was able to retract my foreskin behind  the head of my flaccid penis which was something I had never done voluntarily before,  a big mental milestone for me. About three weeks later I was able to fully retract my foreskin with an erect penis and with no pain, and more importantly I was able to return back over the head of penis without difficultly.  This now happens naturally when I have sexual intercourse, and with a fully functioning foreskin that sex is now so much better.

The frenulum is much like the joining ridge under the tongue. A small piece of skin under the glans joins the glans to the foreskin. On the erect penis if the frenulum is short, when one retracts the foreskin and then lets go, the foreskin slides or springs forward again.

During erection the short frenulum tethers the foreskin forward, on the contrary intercourse exerts forces which pull the foreskin backward. This will cause a variety of pleasure/pain sensations.

With frenulum breve (also known as having a short banjo string) the foreskin may be mobile, but cannot retract due to insufficient slack in the frenulum. It is entirely possible to have phimosis and frenulum breve; indeed, most men with full phimosis possess a certain element of frenulum brevity.

You will notice the problem while having sex without a condom as soon as the foreskin is involuntarily and repeatedly pulled backwards . The stress often causes pain, soreness, and bruising for some days afterwards, or maybe the frenulum can rip. Occasionally, this leads to it tearing during intercourse.

Just like the phimotic band the frenulum can also be effectivly stretched although it is slightly more tricky.

In case you have tore your frenulum through sexual activity, allow it to heal before following these instructions.

i) Locate the phimotic ring

ii) Grip the end of the frenulum which joins onto the phimotic ring between thumb and forefinger

iii) Pull away from the body (from the glans) until taut, and a little uncomfortable.

iv) Hold for thirty seconds, then let it go. It may help to hook your thumb around to stop the frenulum slipping away.

Repeat twice a day for several weeks before seeing results.

The condition of phimosis can be mild or severe and this will influence the amount of time required to loosen the foreskin sufficiently. Very severe phimosis also known as pinhole phimosis is where the the glans or head of the penis cannot be exposed even when flaccid since the foreskin is so tight and the diameter of the phimotic band is very narrow to the point where urination can be painful. In these cases it may be required to invest some months of strecthing in order to see results.

It is important to note that all skin stretches and the foreskin is no different, in reality what is happening is that new skin cells are being created as we stretch. this process is somewhat similar to what happens to our skin when we become overweight. In order to speed up the process we can employ a topical cream, ointment, foam, lotion or gel such as betamethasone which normally requires a prescription from your doctor. You should not apply this kind of topical steroid for more than three months at a rate of a couple of times a day.

As described in the article on phimosis strecthing if it is not possible to insert your fingers or a device in order to stretch simply start by pulling back on the penile skin which will naturally draw the foreskin back and stretch it, once you start to see results you can move onto other techniques.

What is Phimosis?

1. Classical Phimosis: The foreskin is too tight and cannot easily be retracted over the head of your penis;
2. Paraphimosis: where a tight foreskin may retract but this results in it getting stuck below the head of the penis;
3. Fraenulum breve: where the fraenulum is too short to support full retraction of the foreskin.