Porterbrook Clinic Sheffield Care Trust Dealing with Male Sexual Dysfunction Some Facts about your Penis Andrology Service (Urology) Sheffield Teaching Hospitals Information for Users of our service Dr Kevan Wylie Clinical Lead Lead Clinician (Andrology) Porterbrook Clinic 75 Osborne Road Nether Edge Sheffield S11 9BF Telephone: 0114 271 6671 Fax: 0114 271 8693 Email: mail@porterbrookclinic.org.uk www.porterbrookclinic.org.uk
Men are often concerned about the size and shape of their penis and they sometimes compare the size of their penis with that of their peers during early school years in the shower room or behind the cycle shed. He may see his father s penis and immediately compare his own to his father with great disappointment. Get to know the different parts of your genitals (Figure 1). A hand held mirror may help you (Figure 2). Frenulum Many studies have shown that women are seldom interested in the size of their partner s penis instead the qualities that women look for in their partner include tenderness, erotic creativity and faithfulness to the relationship. Time spent working at improving these issues can help detract from the anxiety and worry about your penis size. Shaft Figure 1 Glans Testicle Dealing with Male Sexual Dysfunction
Figure 2 It is important to remember that the vagina has a length of 7-11 centimetres (2.75-4.25 inches) and this will expand to accommodate the erect penis. Even in the flaccid and erect state most penises would fit snugly inside the vagina. Sexologists generally agree that female orgasm is achieved through stimulation of several anatomical structures like clitoral stimulation, the G spot in the anterior vagina wall and receptors around the cervical region. None of these require long penises! Issues regarding size of penis for gay men may be different but please feel free to discuss this further with your therapist. What a man often forgets is that he is viewing other men from a front on position but when looking at his own penis always views this from above. When you sit down part of the penis retracts into the abdomen and so will appear shorter than it truly is. Any comparison should be made viewing oneself in a full length mirror similar to viewing contemporaries. Normalising your worry In a recent large study conducted in France, the flaccid (non-erect) penis was found to measure 7 centimetres (2.75 inches). 0 inch
You can measure the length of your nonerect penis by lying down flat on your back. You should ensure you are in a warm room and will not be interrupted (anxiety and fear may lead to muscle contraction and shortening of the penis!). You should measure from the base of the penis at the junction with the tummy wall to the tip of the glans penis using a short piece of string. Compare this with erect penis line B which is the length described. A study in Brazil looked at the erect penis and the average length was found to be 14.5 centimetres (5.75 inches). The mean proximal circumference was 11.2 centimetres (4.25 inches). You can determine your girth by measuring with a piece of string around the base of the erect penis and comparing with line C below. Helping you There are specific techniques which are described below. Looking at yourself in the mirror an exercise 1. There are techniques available to help men dissatisfied with the size of their penis. The first of these involves more detailed attention to your body by viewing it in the mirror (Figure 3). Most of us have feelings of one sort or another about our bodies things we like about ourselves and things we don t like. These feelings can affect how we feel sexually. The aim of this exercise is to make you more aware of the feelings that you have. You may not be aware of any feelings about your body, or you may not feel like you want to do this exercise, perhaps because you feel unhappy about it. This exercise can help you to develop some form of understanding of how you feel about your own body. Hold this A - FLACCID PENIS LENGTH B - ERECT PENIS LENGTH C - ERECT PROXIMAL PENILE GIRTH es 1 2 3 4 5 6 Some Facts about your Penis
session in a room with the full length mirror or use the largest mirror you can find. Try to make sure the room is warm and take off all your clothes and look at yourself in the mirror. If it seems too difficult, start with wearing some clothes, and gradually take off garments until you are only wearing shorts or briefs. Eventually you should aim to stand nude in front of the mirror. Start at the top of your head and look at: Your hair The shape of your face Your eyes The texture of your skin Your ears Your body hair Your pubic hair Ask yourself the same questions. Now look at: Your testicles Your penis Ask yourself the same questions. You may need to touch parts of your body to start to experience some feelings about that part of the body. If your therapist asks you to do so, you should write some of these thoughts down in the diary sheet provided. What do you like about what you see? Figure 3 Would you change anything if you could? What? Next look at: Your shoulders Your arms Your hands Your fingers Your chest Your hips Some Facts about your Penis
2. Some men find that trimming or shaving the pubic hair makes them feel more comfortable and defines the penis more clearly. 3. Consider using a penoscrotal ring (see our separate leaflet). 4. We can offer therapy sessions. This can be on a one-to -one basis or in a group of 3 or 4 other men with worries. 5. Vacuum pumps and extenders are options which sometimes help. 6. Occasionally cosmetic surgery may be an option. Surgery involves either cutting the suspensory ligament of the penis to increase length or transferring body fat from another part of the body into the penis. The first operation increases the risk of buckling during sexual intercourse and the latter may have a reduced effect after a couple of months due to re-absorption of body fat (up to 50%). There is also a risk of scar tissue forming in the penis. Very few treatments are available on the health service and their role in medical practice remain undetermined. Please feel free to discuss this with your doctor further if you still want to consider one of the options. H12 Porterbrook Clinic 2006