Uncircumcised men--Do you ever retract your foreskin before exposing your penis to the doctor?

In other threads, some uncircumcised men have said that they find it embarrassing when the foreskin is retracted during an exam of the genitalia. I am wondering if any of you have retracted the foreskin prior to lowering your undershorts or lifting your gown for the genital exam? If not, have you ever considered doing it? Would it be less embarrassing if the skin was already back and the head exposed so the doctor did not have to retract it or tell you to retract it? Would you do it so that the doctor might think you are circumcised?

Would you do it so that the doctor might think you are circumcised?

I don't think a doctor is going to be fooled if an uncircumcised patient rolled back his foreskin prior to the exam ... it will be very obvious that there is an excess of skin bunched up around the corona ... and besides, even if an uncircumcised male were to try it out, the foreskin will not stay long in that rolled back position, it will simply slide back over the glans, either very quickly or maybe a bit slower, but slide back it will.

The only way it might stay put would be if the patient had a phismosic foreskin - namely with too small an opening to allow the glans to pass through (easily or without pain). And if a patient with phismosis tried to retract his foreskin beforehand to fool the doctor, it would be a painful exercise to begin with. And there would so much excess skin that you wouldn't fool anyone anyway ...

Always I let the doctor do it on my penis, it's the procedure and the embarassing is part of it 😃

I have done a couple of times, when i was younger, i dont have a lot of foreskin anyway, so when i do retract it there

isnt much foreskin behind the head,especially if i retract it by pulling back the skin from the base of my cock.

No - if needed, such things are better left to the doctor I think.

Embarrassing?? Not at all... Exciting?? Yes it is to the core... It increases my heart beat when the doc pulls down the underwear or tells me to do so and then does the rest of it on his /her own...

In my experience the retraction is part of the external exam for non-circumsized patients. Retracting it prior to the exam is useless because it will roll back and even if it doesn't, it will be plain obvious that you are uncircumsised.

About the embarassment, I certainly prefer to do it myself than have the doctor do it.

Usually the doctor pulled back my foreskin. I've never done it before the exam my self.

For me, the awkwardness of retracting my foreskin for an examination is not the act of having it pulled back / pulling it back, but the head of my penis being exposed in general - no one ever normally sees my exposed glans (my foreskin is always forward if I'm changing at the gym, showering in public, etc.) except for sexual partners, so it feels quite vulnerable.

Tim,

This is very interesting to me. I have a couple of hypothetical possibilities for you to consider. First, suppose that you needed to be circumcised for medical reasons. Would having your glans exposed at all times be embarrassing to you, or is it just embarrassing to have the glans of your intact penis exposed?

Second, would the embarrassment of having an exposed glans cause you to feel that you would never want to be circumcised?

In addition, I am curious what you think of circumcised penises from an aesthetic standpoint.

Tim,

This is very interesting to me. I have a couple of hypothetical possibilities for you to consider. First, suppose that you needed to be circumcised for medical reasons. Would having your glans exposed at all times be embarrassing to you, or is it just embarrassing to have the glans of your intact penis exposed?

Second, would the embarrassment of having an exposed glans cause you to feel that you would never want to be circumcised?

In addition, I am curious what you think of circumcised penises from an aesthetic standpoint.

I'm circumcised, but I imagine it's much like any exam of bits that are rarely, if ever, seen. I have a colonoscopy on Friday. It's exciting and embarrassing for the doctor to view my anus then advance the scope to view my colon. Same feeling when I had a cystoscopy last year. Watching the video screen as the scope approached and entered my penis was exciting and embarrassing. Having a tour of my waterworks was equally intimate and embarrassing. Oh, there's your urinary sphincter, that's where the semen comes out, there's your bladder....

Would having your glans exposed at all times be embarrassing to you, or is it just embarrassing to have the glans of your intact penis exposed?

Back in the world of Classical Antiquity, amongst our cultural 'ancestors' the Greeks and Romans, nudity as such was not all that remarkable. Think of Roman public baths, public communal toilets, gymnastic games and training held in the nude - think original Olympic Games also all held with naked athletes (except the chariot races for some reason).

But while there was nothing especially embarrassing to these situations for competitors or viewers, one little aspect that was thought to be horrible humiliating was exposing the glans in public or to strangers. That's why athletes, when competing in games, tied off the foreskin with a string or brightly colored ribbon so that it would not accidentally slide back.

Think of this partially as a cultural holdover from long ago times, but times that have influenced our present way of living in so many ways.

No, I never have done this. When our family doctor is ready to examine my penis, she retracts the foreskin herself. She does ask me to hold my penis out of the way during the testicle exam as she uses both hands in the process.

I've had it done and I don't find it embarrassing. It's all going to be examined anyways. So whether the doctor or I retracts my foreskin does not change the fact that's it's all going to be touched anyways.

The doctor always retracted my foreskin. I was never really embarrassed to have it done...it was always just part of the exam.

At the age of 12 my mother took me to the Doctor to have my foreskin circumcised. The Doctor chose instead to dilate the tight tip and thoroughly stretch my foreskin so that it would readily retract. The doctor applied a bandage with my foreskin in the retracted position and sent me home. Two days later my mother removed the bandage. My foreskin immediately slid forward covering my glans. My mother instructed me to keep my foreskin retracted so that "adhesions" did not form. I agreed. My sensitive glans was very uncomfortable rubbing against my clothing so I slid my foreskin forward. The tip soon tightened up to the same condition as prior to the Doctor dilating it. Two weeks later my mother asked me about the status of my foreskin. Not wanting to be circumcised I told her that my foreskin was now fully retracted and that my penis "head" was now completely exposed all the time. "My foreskin is gone". She accepted my statement and nothing further was said.

When I entered the seventh grade, gym class, the locker room, and showers, I soon found found that I was the only male that sported a foreskin. ALL my classmates had been circumcised with their glans exposed. I was embarassed and developed a fear that I too would HAVE to be circumcised. I grew very conscious of my uncircumcised status and never allowed anyone to see my foreskin.

At the age of 15, I was required to have a sports physical for school. My mother made an appointment with a different Doctor. This Doctor had a reputation for circumcising little boys. He had circumcised the foreskin of a friend at the age of 11. I had concerns that the Doctor would circumcise my foreskin which was soon to be examined. Before going to the Doctor I retracted my foreskin so that it would appear that I was circumcised. When the Doctor asked me to "Drop my pants" I eagerly complied and stuck my "circumcised" penis out for him to examine. Unfortunately my foreskin decided to slide forward at that precise moment covering my glans. I was embarassed and feared that the Doctor was going to circumcise my foreskin right then and there. The Doctor checked me for a hernia and felt my testicles. He then proceeded to retract my foreskin and pinched the sensitive tip of my glans so that he could look up my pee hole. The exam was over. I passed. The Doctor filed out the form, placed it in an envelope and sealed it. I do not know what the Doctor's comments were with regards to my foreskin. Fortunately my mother was not present during the examination of my foreskin and no comments were made to her. (She probably would have had me circumncised.) I still carried the fear that I would eventually be required to have my foreskin circumcised. That was for a discussion with another Doctor.

Doctor has always done himself when checking lol

Being un-circumcised used to bother me when I was younger as I was different than most of the other guys who were circumsized. As I got older, it became less of an issue, and by the time I was in my late teens, didn't bother me at all, as I found out many European men aren't cut, so while it's a very big thing here in the US, knowing others were out there like me made me feel Ok with it. As far as going to the Doc's is concerned, at 50 years old, nothing really embarrasses me anymore, so a foreskin is about as shocking as showing an elbow or knee, I don't even think twice about it!

I prefer uncut to circumcised tbh - ive never felt embarrassed or had issue with being uncut myself

In every medical book I have read, it is stated that out of courtesy for the patient's modesty, the doctor should ask the patient to retract his own foreskin when the penis is examined. However, it sounds like many doctors do this themselves without asking their male patients to do so.

No, never done that. I don't know about others, but retracting my foreskin in front of others is usually associated with some kind of sexual gesture, so it would be strange to do it in front of my doctor unless he specifically asked me to. I don't find it embarrassing and I would certainly never try to make it appear as if I was circumcised.

No I have never done it, the dr has

In every medical book I have read, it is stated that out of courtesy for the patient's modesty, the doctor should ask the patient to retract his own foreskin when the penis is examined. However, it sounds like many doctors do this themselves without asking their male patients to do so.

I'm circumcised so I don't want to speak for anyone who is uncircumcised, but I don't see how any modesty is protected by the having the patient rather than the doctor retracting the foreskin. I know this may be a crude way to look at it, but once you're standing there with your shorts around your knees and your genitals on full display, is there really any modesty left to protect?

A better reason would seem to be to protect the safety of the patient. If a patient can't retract or has trouble retracting his foreskin then it may not be good for the doctor to retract.

but I don't see how any modesty is protected by the having the patient rather than the doctor retracting the foreskin ... once you're standing there with your shorts around your knees and your genitals on full display, is there really any modesty left to protect? .

It probably has little to do with modesty, but more with not hurting the patient.. Foreskins cover up a very sensitive area and are themselves sensitive as well. If you're circumcised you may not appreciate the sensitivity which is moreover, different for each male. Everyone who isn't cut probably has a different technique for retracting the foreskin with as little discomfort as possible.

This btw, can be a (little) problem not only with doctors and examinations, but also during first time intimacy with girlfriends or partners. If they go about retracting the foreskin roughly or abruptly, it may not really feel so nice for the guy ...

It probably has little to do with modesty, but more with not hurting the patient.. Foreskins cover up a very sensitive area and are themselves sensitive as well. If you're circumcised you may not appreciate the sensitivity which is moreover, different for each male. Everyone who isn't cut probably has a different technique for retracting the foreskin with as little discomfort as possible.

This btw, can be a (little) problem not only with doctors and examinations, but also during first time intimacy with girlfriends or partners. If they go about retracting the foreskin roughly or abruptly, it may not really feel so nice for the guy ...

Yeah I think you are right @agracier. It is obvious some foreskins are tighter than other ones so how girlfriends and doctors retract them will matter.

@supermoney777 I think you are right as well about safety because I am sure it must hurt some men if it is done roughly. When I read about foreskins I found out there is no correct age for when foreskins can be retracted and only about 50 to 60% of 10 year old boys can pull them all the way back. A doctor should not just think without asking that a foreskin will be able to go back. Some just won't.

I believe the last few comments on retracting ones foreskin have been absolutely correct. Most doctors are careful and respect that some guy's foreskin & penis are extremely sensitive. The worst and painful exam I ever had was in college. It didn't matter if you were uncircumcised or circumcised, guys always commented on how rough this doctor was at the health center. Your modestly is gone "once you're standing there with your shorts round your knees." This doctor would just grab my penis an pushes my foreskin all the back, with the other hand rub the glans and open your pee hole. After that, very hard squeeze my testicles and rough hernia exam. My friends that were circumcised commented on the discomfort of their penis, testicles, and hernia exam. Before or after this exam, I never had a rough or discomfort during an exam. It's hard to say if my penis, testicles or my groin hurt worst.

I was required to have a sports physical in the 10th grade - I was 15. ALL my fellow classmates were circumcised. I was not circumcised and felt embarrassed. Before proceeding to the doctor, I retracted my foreskin with the thought that the doctor would think that I was circumcised. When the doctor asked me to drop my drawers, my foreskin slid forward covering my glans. I was embarrassed. The doctor completed the exam including retracting my foreskin and looking in my pee hole.

Frankly, I never gave it much thought.

Before I could bathe myself, my mother would always retract my foreskin and wash under it. (I was the youngest of 4 boys, so she knew what she was doing.) When I could bathe myself i continued the practice. Since my mom did it at bath time, I never thought twice about the doctor doing it during an exam. (In Sex Ed in school, I learned the reason WHY this was so important)

Also, as I have said many times, my time in the Navy burned away virtually any sense of modesty I ever possessed.

The first time I saw the NP who is my PCC, she asked if it was OK if she did it, or if I wanted to do it. I told her it made no difference, that it had to be done one way or the other, so she just does it as part if the exam.

No, i never retract my foreskin before an exam. and yes, i find quite embarrasing my doctor pulling it down.... and i love that moment!! it´s very very exciting having one of the most sensitive parts of your body manipullated by a doctor or nurse

My favorite part of my annual urological exam is when my doctor puts on her latex gloves and gently, yet firmly retracts my foreskin fully to examine my penis. So there's no way I would do that myself before an exam, only to miss out on all that excitement!

The only time I've had to do this is the very first time I went for an STD exam maybe 4 years ago. I had a rash down there, which was actually the result of a latex allergy to a cheap condom. I just had a new partner, and was perhaps overworried. Since there was no issue on the "outside" of my penis, the only thing to examine was the glans itself, so I pulled the foreskin back as soon as I took off my underwear. Had nothing to do with embarrassment - I mean, you're at a doctor, they've seen it all...