Long story short, I had an STD scare around a year ago which turned out to be nothing but since then have been super paranoid about them. Every little bump or lump around my genitals freaks me out. Then, I had a small lump around where my penis meets body and although it was probably skin tag or something benign I got it burnt off straight away. Had it for at least a year and went to see 4 GP's who couldn't agree. 1 said wart and 3 said skin tag. Did the acetic acid test and it didn't turn white and also wasn't cauliflower shaped and no cluster but still worried me badly Probably asking the wrong group of people on this site but is there a way to think about it less? Right now I'm thinking of making a rule for myself to just not look at genitals because I know I'll look at something minor like shave rash and convince myself it's an STD etc etc. Already banned myself from googling symptoms (ironically where I found this site)
Guys have been super cautious of their genitals since the beginning of time. Call it the male ego, or what have you, but all males are super aware of what is going on down there. You are not alone. If you worry because you think you will find something you dont like down there, then maybe you should protect yourself better so there is less to worry about. Just ignoring it is not healthy either, you should constantly check for bumps and lumps as the doctors tell you to do this frequently. I would stop putting yourself in compromising situations and therefore will not have to worry as much. We all get pimples, warts, tags, moles, cysts, down there that bother us and sometimes force us to take action such as removal. You are not acting any different from any other male, we just dont talk about it. Condoms are the best way to protect against STDs. So make sure you use one next time and alleviate your stress afterwards.