A German reader (of Vietnamese descent) tells of his phimosis problem

I was about 14 or 15 when I first knew that I had phimosis. There was a unit about sexual education at school and the teacher told us that at least 1 in 10 could not retract his foreskin. So I went home and tried it. And failed.

I never told anybody of my condition. I was ashamed. I was even more ashamed since apparently 90% at my age could retract their foreskin. For many years my sexuality was nil. Time passed and I got older. For many years, I ignored my phimosis. As I did not engage in sexual activities, it was not that big of a problem. Then I realised that I had to do something. Sooner or later, I will have a girlfriend and it is time to act. I was 20 at that point.

One day I plucked up my courage and called the doctor. He told me to come in soon. I did. At the reception, the secretary asked for my name and when I told her, she asked me whether I was the guy with phimosis. Almost silently I told her 'Yes'. Now looking back at it, my issue wasn't as big as other men's: impotence and incontinence were the main issues at the day. Mine seemed like a minor inconvenience. As I waited for my appointment, I became more and more nervous. What is the doctor going to think? I took a sip of water. My name was called when I hadn't even finished swallowing the first gulp.

So I went into the examination room, the doctor sitting there and calmly asking me about my issue. I stated that I suspect that I had phimosis - I could retract the foreskin when flaccid but when erect, nothing would move. He asked me to take down my trousers and lie down. After a few seconds examining my penis he told me: 'You need to be circumcised'. I was not in shock, in fact, I expected him to say that. I replied with a simple 'Ok'. Then he told me not to worry and so on. He gave me the telephone number of a hospital nearby and told me to call them for a surgery appointment. I went home and did so. Circumcision was due in just two and a half months time.

In the meantime, I read more about circumcision and got more and more excited. A problem which existed for too long would finally come to an end. But there was one problem. In Germany, you can't go to surgery and after that go home by yourself. You need to be picked up. I couldn't ask my parents, they didn't know about my phimosis or my surgery. So I asked a close friend who had a car. And man, I was so relieved when I told him my story and he did not react weirdly. He was pretty open and supportive. So with everything sorted, I waited for the big day.

The day of my circumcision came. I was excited. I woke up in the morning in a positive mood and couldn't wait to make my way to the hospital. I texted my friend about when to pick me up and where to park his car. Arriving at the hospital, I first had a talk with the surgeon. He told me about the surgery and asked for my consent. I signed all the documents and everything was in order. Then I had to change - I remember looking at my foreskin and saying goodbye before getting out of the changing room. I was escorted to the operating table, parked in a central area. I remember enjoying the bright spring sun and listening to the radio, praying that everything will be fine.

Then the operating table was pushed into the operating room. The surgeon and the female assistant asked how I was doing at that moment. I replied that I'm doing just fine. Then he took a mask and applied it to my face. It was anaesthesia. I took three deep breaths and was gone. Surgery started. It must have been pretty quick. I went to hospital at 10am and woke up from anesthesia at 12 noon. Suddenly I was in the recovery room, and felt something hard 'down there'. It was a bandage. As soon as I woke up, a nurse came in, asking me if I would like some biscuits and tea. I accepted the offer and enjoyed the fact that everything was now over. After I had recovered from anaesthesia and surgery for a little while I was allowed to walk to my locker. I called my friend and he congratulated me and said he would soon be there. After a short talk to the doctors, he came and hugged me. "Congratulations, bro" he said.

Everything went well after my surgery. No swelling, little pain. The day after circumcision, the bandage came off after going to the toilet. For the first time I saw my 'new' penis. It still looked freaky, due to the stitches, but I was happy. After exactly 18 days, my sutures closed up and all the stitches were gone. I was super happy. Recovery after circumcision was faster than I would have thought.

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Now, three years after circumcision, I am more than happy to be a cut guy. There is only one thing I regret: Why didn't I got circumcised sooner?

CH.