So, I wanted to include some male issues in my blog, and there are just certain topics that I feel a man would be more qualified to write about. Foreskin restoration is one of those issues. I personally find the subject fascinating, and I managed to find someone who is willing to publicly speak about it. I want to thank Coltor so much for agreeing to be a guest blogger. If you wish to contact him to ask questions, or provide some (hopefully positive) feedback, you can e-mail him here.
Hope you enjoy!
-Lilith
Your first question may be: What good is a foreskin anyway?
The easy answer: sexual satisfaction and sensitivity.
If you live in the United States
This study revealed that, on average, 5 areas of the foreskin are more sensitive than the most sensitive part of a circumcised penis. Men with uncircumcised penises also had more penile sensitivity overall than circumcised individuals (due to a lack of keratinisation).
As well as housing dense pockets of nerve endings and preventing keratinisation, the foreskin serves an important sexual function. When up-and-down movements are applied to an uncircumcised penis (through masturbation or intercourse), the foreskin acts as a rolling bearing [illustration]. The rolling motion not only provides plenty of pleasure to nerve endings in the foreskin and penis, but it also reduces the need for lubrication. You can see a significant difference in masturbation techniques of circumcised and uncircumcised men. Uncircumcised men use a rolling motion on their sensitive areas and circumcised men use a rubbing motion.
On top of all that, you can hide your heroin in there.
If the foreskin is such a great thing, why do we lop it off?
To get it out of the way, there is a common myth about foreskins. It states that keeping a foreskin clean is difficult, so it's better to circumcise. Yes, it's another piece of skin to wash in the shower. No, it is not difficult to clean.
Currently, circumcision is only a cultural norm in relatively small parts of the world. Though there is a minority of people doing it for legitimate medical reasons (occasionally the foreskin is so tight, it causes painful erections), there isn't any research to suggest that it's a necessary surgery. In fact, not a single accredited national or international medical agency condones the practice in a non-consensual setting (with infants, for example) [see references at bottom]. I will mention that a few studies suggest that uncircumcised men are at a higher risk for a HIV infection, but in reality, you should be protecting yourself from STDs with condoms or other barrier protection. (There is a fierce debate on the legitimacy of these studies)
Some cultures do it for religious reasons, some to prove their manhood. I'm really not an authority on cultural anthropology, so I will not be getting into that. I do, however, have a little local background on the United States
Depending on where you live, the cultural norm has been caused by a variety of things. In the United States
“[Circumcision] should be performed by a surgeon without administering an anesthetic, as the brief pain attending the operation will have a salutary effect upon the mind, especially if it be connected with the idea of punishment, as it may well be in some cases. The soreness which continues for several weeks interrupts the practice, and if it had not previously become too firmly fixed, it may be forgotten and not resumed.”
and
“In females, the author has found the application of pure carbolic acid [phenol] to the clitoris an excellent means of allaying the abnormal excitement.”
As you very well know, we aren’t a society that burns off clitorises with acid. For some reason, though, circumcision continues to be a popular choice.
What I believe to be the BIGGEST reason for circumcision is a lack of information. If every expectant mother knew that not a single medical association recommends routine postnatal circumcision, I'm sure rates would be much lower than they are.
Now we're down to "intimate time with the author."
Why am I telling you this?
I tell you this because I'm restoring my foreskin, also known as "tugging."
As an infant, my parents had me circumcised in what they believed my best interest. Later in life, I discovered the foreskin restoration movement. It's an online community of men walking the slow road toward once again having a foreskin.
Growing back a body part that got chopped off?! How does that work?
It's based on a basic dermatological principle. When a force is applied to skin over time, newer skin cells form between existing ones. If a person is obese and then loses a lot of weight, it is not uncommon to see extra folds of skin on their body. Their skin grew to accommodate the larger surface area needed.
How do you create that force?
This is an answer that could be several pages long. To grossly simplify the process, part of a man's shaft skin is stretched over a device and either held in place with surgical tape or friction. Then, tension is applied to the device. Elastics (rubber bands), suspender straps, and weights are the most common ways of applying this force. This force is applied for a number of hours a day (time depends on the person's schedule, how comfortable and concealable the device is, and experience).
What will the new foreskin be like?
While it's not possible to regrow certain parts of the foreskin that were removed (I will never have the nerve ending groupings, ridged band, or muscular tissue present in a "true" foreskin), the glans and inner skin will be smooth and moist like those with a traditional foreskin. Already 7 months into tugging, (I started getting serious about it in the last 6 weeks) I’m definitely more sensitive and there is enough slack skin for the rolling motion to be present. From my anecdotal evidence, rolling is incredibly better than rubbing.
How long will it take?
Though there have never been studies on it, personal reports online say somewhere between one and four years. The actual time depends on how much skin was removed during circumcision, your individual body, and how dedicated you are to wearing your device.
Do you have any other reasons for doing it?
Yes. Part of discovering the differences between circumcised and uncircumcised penises left me in want of a foreskin, not only because I was “missing out” on such a great thing, but because I felt incomplete, in a way. Like I had been robbed of my right to sexual pleasure for no reason except for tradition. Like I had been mutilated without my consent. It’s weird to feel regret for an action that wasn’t my own, but I regret that my parents chose to have me circumcised. For a little while, I did hold resentment for them. I asked my mother why I was circumcised. It was recommended by an (ex)husband of one of my aunts (he was a physician). I do not blame my parents for their ignorance, as they were trying to make decisions in my best interest, but it does disgust me that there was such a lack of information to them at the time. I have not told them about my choice to restore, and I don’t know if I ever will. I don’t really have a reason to.
When it comes down to my motivations for writing this article, I'm not trying to drum up business for people who sell these tugging devices, I don't even expect many people to want to restore their foreskin. I just want the world to know how barbaric and outdated the practice of circumcision is. It leaves your child physically scarred, and in some cases like myself, emotionally scarred. The decision is theirs, not yours.
Additional resources:
http://www.goofyfootpress.com/links/circumcision/ - Paul Joannides, author and publisher of The Guide to Getting It On has assembled a great set of links on circumcision. I highly recommend you go pick up a copy of his book.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreskin_restoration - The Foreskin Restoration Wiki.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Restoration_device - A list of non-surgical foreskin restoration devices. See the ‘references’ section for links to where you can see pictures of the various devices (or purchase one, if you’re so inclined)
http://foreskin-restoration.net/forum/ - An online support forum for restorers or potential restorers. It also functions as a forum for the “intactivist” network.
http://www.intactamerica.org/ - Intact America
http://sexisfun100.blogspot.com/2007/01/sif-48-circumcision-and-foreskin.html - The podcast episode that is the reason I even know about foreskin restoration.
Medical organizations that do not advise circumcision:
I cannot possibly list every medical society that condemns the practice, but I feel that four credible sources should suffice.
- C. Lesage
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