when i pull my foreskin back the glans feels moist and somewhat sticky and it looks pretty smooth but then if i leave it retracted it gets wrinkly and unhealthy looking. ive been to the doctor twice and he said he didnt see anything unusual but it looks weird to me still. its almost as if when im erect the glans looks full at first but kind of gets smaller and then wrinkly. it doesnt itch or burn and no discharge and doesnt really look like red or anything and no flaky skin so im really confused. also when water is run over it or its moisturised it looks ok but after it dries it starts to look weird
Some photos might help describe your issue better. Photos for wrinkly case, non-wrinkly case, foreskin pulled back case
this what it looks like after leaving the foreskin retracted for some time when erect
forgot to click the reply to you button but the picture is below
John, a few essential questions: what age are you? Sorry, personal stuff next: are your regularly sexually active at the moment? Do you masturbate regularly, if so, typical frequency per week? Would you say you have satisfying or enjoyable erections?
In terms of seeing doctors it is usually best to get a second opinion from a different doctor. For you, that may mean seeing a Urologist.
It terms of what I see: I would say the skin on the head of your penis is not healthy - things like soap and shower gel eventually dry out the sensitive skin on the head of the penis, and as a result it will loose the natural elasticity and suppleness that it has - and this can be contributing to what you see.
Exclude ALL soaps, shower gels and other forms of body wash from ever getting on the foreskin and head of your penis - use water to clean with and rub with the inside of your hand. After washing always ensure the head and inner-foreskin of the penis are completely dried.
Get yourself some liquid Coconut Oil that is for use on skin, rather than particularly for hair. Introduce using it once or twice a week after you have fully dried yourself after taking a shower - a tiny amount is all you need. Place it on the fingertips first, then apply a small amount to the head and inner-foreskin and rub it in for 40 seconds to a minute each time. Over a period of months start to use Coconut Oil more regularly - after each time you take a shower for example. It is also a good lube for masturbation, again, use it quite sparingly - a small amount is all you need - please note, coconut oil will disintegrate most condoms if you are sexually active …
im not sexually active though i do masturbate 2-4 times a week
i also notice that when i first pull my foreskin back there is lots of sensitivity because the glans is moist but then after a bit it gets a lot less sensitive
So you need to follow the things I have suggested in my initial reply to you so that the skin on the glans / head of your penis becomes more healthy.
What we need to identify is the moisture that is underneath your foreskin when you first expose your glans? Do you know what it is? There are several things it could be:
do you always expose the glans at a particularly time of day, such as getting out of bed in the morning? Or is the moisture present irrespective of what time of day it is?
What is your daily routine: do you always expose the glans and wash it when you get washed or showered in the morning?
Perhaps you remove the moisture with a tissue, cloth or towel - what is your routine on this.
Knowing your age would also help? Do you live on your own? Do you regularly watch porn? So, what I am getting at is, are you regularly sexually aroused? As, there are not that many things that can be present on the glans: either it is simply the natural secretions of subum produced by sebaceous glands on the head of your penis. It could be pre-ejaculate, or less likely, even urine. This is why I ask your age …
Could the moisture also be from sweat? Or that is unexpected in that part of the body?
Yes, moisture is often derived from sweat in the entire groin region. If I give you an extreme example: competitive cyclists sat on a bike for between 3 and 6 or more hours can develop a huge amount of sweat in the entire groin region, despite wearing things like lycra shorts that help wick-away sweat - it can be a major problem.
So, any activity that raises the heart rate will produce sweat. In addition, some people simply like the feeling of their body being really warm and wear clothing that in-effect means they are too warm and sweat is produced. Lots of indoor environments such as offices can encourage sweat too, unless you are wearing really light-weight clothing, again, sweat can develop - and when this occurs on a regular basis it can be a problem …
i think it might be sebum oil because it will be present on my glans if i dry tbe foreskin then put it back up for like 2 minutes. i noticed also that sometimes when i retract the foreskin and stretch it all the way down i can see a weird white powdery substance on the bottom of my glans. is this smegma or dried skin? i also have a partially tight foreskin that kind of feels sticky on the glans and leaves indentations on it sometimes but if i air it out the foreskin works fine but the glans gets kind of dry and unhealthy looking. im going to the urologist soon to see what he says
So, the upper level of the skin of the body is in a constant process of renewing itself and therefore you will get dead skin cells wherever you have an exposed level of skin.
The head of the penis is slightly different is that you have the normal production of sebum and this mixes together with the dead skin cells on the head of the penis to form smegma - or at least, that is my understanding.
As I said in my initial response. looking at the photo you have posted most causes of what can be seen on the head of your penis is long-term exposure to soap and other forms of body wash, such as shower gel.
For most males therefore, remove the soap and other forms of body wash from contacting the head and foreskin of the penis, implement other good penile hygiene practices such as removing all moisture following showering, washing, remove all traces of pre-ejaculate and semen from the head and foreskin as soon as possible - and eventually the skin will look as it used to do.
Yes change does take a great deal of time to bring about - certainly at least 6 to 8 months of sustained good practices may reveal some initial positive change. Also, if there is a hydration issue, Coconut Oil used regularly and sparingly can produce good results in time …
i dont wash with soap though
Hi John, I’m currently experiencing something similar, showed my dr who took a look and advised nothing to worry about. would be curious to see what the urologist says on your visit
heres another photo
John, as Joshua reports - I think if you showed this photo to most doctors they will also say ‘you have nothing to worry about’ - in the year-and-a-half that I have been involved in these Forums this is not only a stock answer from GP’s / Family / regular doctors, but it seems they never give any advice how you can keep penile skin as healthy as possible.
So, once again here are my essentials: exclude all forms of body wash, particularly soap and shower gel from ever contacting the Foreskin and the head / glans of the penis. For hydration use liquid Coconut Oil (99% pure is really good) that is used for skin, rather than hair, apply at least 3 or 4 times a week, best time is after a shower.
When moisture of any source appears on the head of the penis remove it as soon as possible - carefully dry the inner-foreskin and head of the penis whenever you have washed the penis or taken a shower. Use a clean dry towel that ONLY YOU USE!
Please update after you see the Urologist - it would be interesting if you actually asked - ‘are there any ways of keeping penile skin more healthy in your opinion’ - of the Urologist and see what answer you get …
hi John did you visit the urologist?
yes he said it was nothing
i read in your bio that you have lichen sclerosis, does this look like any early stage of lichen sclerosis?
Certainly the early stages of LS can potentially look like this, as I guess other skin conditions could be. However, this can be very misleading as simple low-level irritation can look like this.
have you any further developments … ?