The differences between inner and outer foreskin!

Inner foreskin is the portion of it that directly touches the glans (at least when the penis is flaccid), and is composed of a different type of skin. Inner foreskin is thinner, pinker, and much more sensitive than outer foreskin. It’s where the ridged band and frenulum are, and overall it has many more nerve endings than the outer foreskin. Circumcision removes a varying amount of inner foreskin- some people lose hardly any of it, some lose much of it, and some are left with literally not a piece of it.

Outer foreskin is the portion that goes over the head but doesn’t directly touch it; that is, it’s the part that touches one’s clothing/the air if naked. Outer foreskin is basically the same as regular shaft skin, it’s just called foreskin because it’s located over the glans.

In foreskin restoration, if any inner foreskin remains it’s important to ensure that both regions of foreskin are given tension to ensure equal growth. This can be accomplished through specific manual tugging exercises, or through device that are intended to tension both the inner and outer foreskin.

beautifullypined:

How you developed! Start off the same but end different. #vagina #penis. #anatomy (Taken with instagram)

Foreskin can be divided into two portions: the inner foreskin and outer foreskin.

Inner foreskin is the portion of it that directly touches the glans (at least when the penis is flaccid), and is composed of a different type of skin. Inner foreskin is thinner, pinker, and much more sensitive than outer foreskin. It’s where the ridged band and frenulum are, and overall it has many more nerve endings than the outer foreskin. Circumcision removes a varying amount of inner foreskin- some people lose hardly any of it, some lose much of it, and some are left with literally not a piece of it.

Outer foreskin is the portion that goes over the head but doesn’t directly touch it; that is, it’s the part that touches one’s clothing/the air if naked. Outer foreskin is basically the same as regular shaft skin, it’s just called foreskin because it’s located over the glans.

In foreskin restoration, if any inner foreskin remains it’s important to ensure that both regions of foreskin are given tension to ensure equal growth. This can be accomplished through specific manual tugging exercises, or through device that are intended to tension both the inner and outer foreskin.

I find that a lot of people don’t realize there are varying degrees of circumcision. Most people think it’s a simple “you have your foreskin or you don’t.” In reality, there are many ways of performing a circumcision, and the final product is dependent on this. The two main types are “loose” circumcisions and “tight” circumcisions.

A loosely circumcised penis refers to one in which the shaft skin is still fairly mobile. While enough foreskin is removed to have the head completely uncovered at all times, enough skin remains that it can be moved up and down the shaft to an extent. There are varying degrees of looseness. Sometimes, it’s just enough to still glide along the shaft a bit, with the skin having only a little bit of “give” to it. For others, the skin can be pulled over the head a bit. In others still, it can move all the way over the head, and even past it.

Essentially, a loose circumcision is the least destructive form of it. The gliding action of the foreskin is one of its main functions, and a major reason why sex tends to be much more satisfying for both partners when a foreskin is present. Circumcised penises that retain some of this gliding action are fortunate.

A tightly circumcised penis, on the other hand, refers to one in which shaft skin is completely (or almost completely) immobile. This is the result of a larger amount of skin being removed: in some cases, not just the foreskin, but some shaft skin too. Tight circumcisions remove an integral function of the intact penis (the aforementioned gliding action), and this, of course, does not come without consequences. Those who are tightly circumcised often must use lubricant when masturbating (or being masturbated by a partner), as the friction without lube may be too uncomfortable, or even painful. Vaginal sex is impacted, too, for both partners. The gliding action a penis is supposed to have helps keep vaginal lubrication in, and a tightly circumcised penis may draw it out too much, causing discomfort for both participants. Even when lubrication is adequate, some women report that a tightly circumcised penis feels rather “blunt” inside her, compared to the massage of a rolling foreskin.

Aside from the friction/lubrication issues, stimulating a penis with a tight circumcision simply tends not to feel as pleasurable. Those who are intact or have a loose cut can simulate having a tight cut by holding the skin all the way back with one hand, and stimulating with the other hand. The pleasure simply doesn’t feel as “deep” without any rolling of the skin.

Another sadly common problem with tight circumcisions is too much skin being removed. When this is the case, some skin from the scrotum and pubic area is pulled onto the shaft during erections to compensate for the lost skin. This can cause painful erections, and unwanted hair on the shaft.

That’s about the gist of the differences. There are also several other variations between circumcisions (for example: whether the scar line, if there is one, is placed high or low; whether the cut removes mostly inner or outer foreskin; whether the frenulum is left intact), but these seem to be fairly indepedant of looseness/tightness. I’m not really sure what the prevalence of loose VS. tight circumcisions is, though I have heard that tighter circumcisions tend to be more common in middle-aged and older men than in younger. Personally, I was born in 1990, and indeed have a loose circumcision. I consider myself fairly lucky in terms of circumcision damage: my loose cut is VERY loose, as I have always been able to pull the skin well over my head, even before I started restoring. Additionally, I have a good amount of inner foreskin remnant, and at least a portion of my frenulum is still present. For these reasons, I thought I was not circumcised for a while after I first learned what circumcision was. I did not realize I was indeed circumcised until a few years later, when I learned what my circumcision scar really was.

Because circumcision is such a “taboo” subject, it is not surprising that most people don’t know that there are different ways of being circumcised (not to mention, it’s not like parents ask which kind they want for their son: it’s all up to the surgeon’s technique, and maybe the circumcision instrument they use). This also explains why a lot of people who are used to stimulating intact penises say that they wouldn’t know what to do with a circumcised penis. They probably don’t realize that plenty of penises are circumcised loosely, and still have that gliding action. Similarly, the varying degrees of looseness and tightness may cause confusion for those who have worked with one but not the other. For example, when I first became sexually active with my girlfriend, she would never move my skin over my head when she gave me handjobs. At first I was confused, but then it dawned on me: her past partners probably didn’t have the ability to move their skin over the head.

Whether a circumcision is loose or tight does not affect the end product of anyone who is restoring their foreskin. However, the journey there is slightly impacted for the tightly circumcised for two reasons. First, because more skin has been removed, more needs to be grown, so the process will take longer. Secondly, because some restoration devices are designed for those with some slack skin, those with tight circumcisions are limited in what devices they can use, until they reach the point of having developed some looseness. In the meantime, two methods that work well for tight circumcisions are manual tugging method #2 and cross taping.

The dartos is a layer of tissue beneath the scrotum and the labia majora. Here of course, I’ll focus on that of the scrotum.

The dartos is responsible for the expanding and contracting scrotal skin tends to do, and this helps regulate temperature (which of course, is important for sperm production). It works in conjunction with the cremaster muscle, which elevates and lowers the testicles for similar reasons.

Apparently in the elderly, the dartos loses some tone, and causes a smoother scrotum that hangs down farther.

The meatus (pronounced mee-ATE-iss) is the external urinary orifice at the end of the urethra. In layman’s terms, the “pee hole.” The meatus exists on the vulva too, but here we’ll deal with it as it pertains to the penis.

The meatus is a little slit, usually surrounded on each side by tiny lip-like flaps.

Sometimes it’s congenitally placed lower on the glans or even shaft, in a condition known hypospadias. Another condition involving the meatus is meatal stenosis. This is when the meatal opening is slightly narrower than is should be. Sometimes it’s a side effect of circumcision, but it can occur in the uncircumcised as well.

The ridged band is a highly-sensitive portion of the foreskin, characterized by some slight wrinkling. It is theorized that the purpose of the ridged band is to help trigger sexual reflexes. Sadly, this skin is mostly or completely removed by circumcision.

The frenular delta is the little triangle where the frenulum meets the glans. It tends to be a highly sexually sensitive spot, even in cases where the frenulum has been completely removed. Remember that next time you perform oral sex on a penis, if that applies to you.

The raphe is a visible seam that extends from the anus across the perineum, and in men, continues up the scrotum and sometimes the penile shaft. The raphe is a result of fetal development, in which the scrotum is basically formed to labia closing up and fusing together.

The prominence of the raphe varies heavily from person to person. Often, the raphe is not visible along the penis at all. Note that the scrotal raphe in the picture linked would be considered very prominent.

The frenulum of the penis is a small strip of skin that connects the underside of the glans to the foreskin. Some colloquially call it a “banjo string.”

Many people with a fully or partially intact frenulum say it is one of the most (if not THE most) sexually sensitive part of their penis. Sadly, most styles of circumcision remove part of all of the frenulum.

Aside from pleasure, the purpose of the frenulum is to help keep the foreskin covering the glans, particularly when flaccid.

Sometimes, the frenulum is a tad too short for the penis in a condition known as frenulum breve, and movement of the foreskin is restricted as a result. If it’s to the point of discomfort or interference with sexual activity (i.e., one “snapping his banjo string- ouch!), there are procedures that can fix this. A frenuloplasty is a minor surgery that should fix this, but if not, a frenulectomy (complete removal of the frenulum), while unfortunate, should do the trick. Circumcision is often recommended in cases of frenulum breve, but this level of destruction is hardly needed.