The Teenage Foreskin
On this page we will be talking about many things to do with the foreskin as a boy comes into puberty. Cleanliness, tightness issues, retracting, psychological issues, fun to have with your foreskin, and many, many more topics that will make you more comfortable with your intactness.
1) Keeping it clean
First off, let's talk about cleanliness and how there are many myths out there about being intact and not being able to keep yourself clean. To understand how to keep clean, lets talk about smegma. Yes, that white substance that lurks underneath the foreskin. Why is it there? Well, to put it into better perspective, consider this: "Smegma is probably the most misunderstood,
most unjustifiably maligned substance in nature. Smegma is clean,
not dirty, and is beneficial and necessary. It moisturizes the glans
and keeps it smooth, soft, and supple. Its antibacterial and
antiviral properties keep the penis clean and healthy. All mammals
produce smegma." Thomas J. Ritter, MD. In fact, the
animal kingdom would probably cease to exist without smegma. So what does this mean to you? Well, retracting your foreskin and cleaning it will ensure the build up doesn't become an issue. Smegma is clean, but urine and other build up will create 'that smell' (the reason for the myth that a foreskin is dirty). A daily shower will see to it that you are kept clean. That's all there is to it. Use a gentle soap and warm water and rinse your skin like you would any other part of your body. Why would you have surgery to prevent a body part getting dirty? Doesn't make sense, does it? Besides, the foreskin is there for a reason, it protects the glans and creates the gliding motion (more on that on this page, Actively Intact)
2) Retracting your foreskin. Many boys, by the time they get to puberty will be able to retract their foreskins without any issue. Up until about the age of twelve or so, the foreskin is attached to the glans. This ensures that the glans remains protected while the penis gets ready for puberty. If you are one of the few who are unable to retract by the time you do get to puberty, either because of tightness of the foreskin or because its still attached to the glans, DON'T PANIC. It's all normal, too.
To aid with stretching the foreskin, in your daily shower, gently and manually tug at your foreskin, opening it wider and wider each time you do it. This will train the ridged band to become looser, and therefore, over about a two week period, let you retract without any issues. If your foreskin is still attached to the glans, again, don't panic. It will come away of its own accord as you develop. Some boys have attached foreskins right up to the age of seventeen or so. It will happen in time. Trust me. I was one of those boys. I had a tight foreskin and attachment until I was sixteen. I manually tugged each evening in the shower, the warm water helping with such a thing, and soon I was nice and loose and my foreskin came away from my glans while I did so, too. A double bonus. Remember, millions of men live perfectly normal lives NEVER once retracting their foreskins. It's only a western notion that the foreskin must be retracted.
If, for some reason, tightness is an issue and you don't have success manually stretching your foreskin, then see your doctor. Make sure he is a foreskin friendly doctor, because, even if Phismosis is diagnosed, circumcision isn't an effective measure. Surgery is surgery, after all. Most times, in fact, 99.9% of the time, a steroid cream can be used to help in combination to manual stretching. Apply the cream either in the morning or at night, but make sure it's applied at the opposite end of the day to when you shower or bath. That way it will give the cream more time to do its thing. Again, this will take a couple of weeks.
3) What's it like to have a foreskin? Well, that's a difficult question to answer. A better way to tackle this, would be to ask, what's it like without one? Without a foreskin there is a dulled sensation due to chaffing and dryness of the glans. Erectile issues later in life are often the result. To imagine yourself only able to see in black and white, would be a good analogy. Sure, you can see, but you can't experience the full sensations that are really on offer. Masturbation is much better with a foreskin (which led to the belief that cutting it off would stop boys from doing this).
That, of course, will never happen. Boys will be boys and touching and exploring ones self is all a normal part of growing up. How could you know what you like and what you don't like if you don't masturbate? How would a future partner even have a clue? So you see, having a foreskin lubricates, sensitizes, and protects the glans. And all boys who are intact know the fun they can have with a foreskin. To put it onto a bit of perspective, try this at home. Sit in a tub full of warm water, and fill an ear syringe or some other bulbous apparatus (such as a turkey baster) with warm bath water. With your foreskin over your glans, lightly pinch it over the opening to the syringe tube, and squeeze the bulb to fill the foreskin; then release in order to suck the water back into the syringe. Repeat doing this until orgasm. You can vary the timing of the squeezing from slow to fast, as if you were humping. The sensation is much like vibration, and the warm water is the kicker – plus, it is a no-mess cleanup, because the semen gets sucked into the syringe with the water. It's a very intense feeling. Another tip: Keep the flow rhythm going throughout the ejaculation, as it intensifies the already skyrocketing orgasm. The orgasmic sensations from this technique can be very intense; in fact, be careful, as they can even be slightly painful. See? Only an intact man could do this. Mind blowing!
Here's something for guys with longer foreskins. Pull the foreskin past the glans, clasp it in between your index and middle fingers (at the base, where the fingers meet the palm), and while you're holding your shaft with the other hand, rub your foreskin over the penis head in a circular fashion – almost like you're rubbing a crystal ball. When you're ready to ejaculate, though, let the semen come out naturally. Again, a great orgasm.
4) Other issues: Seems as you go through high school you'll be teased for a lot of things. Most boys are. Curly hair. Being fat. Too tall. Too short. The list is endless. So when it comes to your penis, you want to make sure you're like everyone else. After all, it's only natural. Rest assured, nearly 80% of the worlds men are intact. Even in America, a circumcising nation, more and more baby boys are being left alone. The circ rate is down to 33% according to some figures. So you see, having a foreskin is normal, wonderful and, above all, something to appreciate. It's easy to clean. Heaps of fun for you and your (future) partner, and above all, makes you a complete man. For many, being complete in such a way is worth more than anything. Just think of the men who had no choice; their parents deciding to have them circumcised. More about this issue will be discussed on this page, Restoration.
This page will be expanded as reader questions come in. Stay tuned.
