The evidence relied upon to provide these answers is anecdotal and usually based on personal experiences. There are no guarantees that the same will work for everyone.
Q: What is Foreskin Restoration?
A: Foreskin Restoration is the process of re-growing the inner and outer shaft skin by stressing it and inducing mitosis in the skin cells.
Q: Why restore? What are the benefits?
A: Some of the benefits men experience from Foreskin Restoration are: Increased sensitivity, eliminating tight painful erections, regaining the function of the foreskin during sex and masturbation, no longer needing lube during masturbation, a moist protected glans and sense of completeness by regaining something that was lost. A recent informal survey in this sub resulted in a list of benefits reported by restorers.
Q: What did I lose when I was circumcised?
A: There is no standardized circumcision procedure, and they are sometimes performed by unqualified and/or inexperienced people, so the losses vary between people.
Every circumcision removes the sphincter at the tip of the foreskin sometimes referred to as the ‘ridged band’. This tissue provides a mechanical function for keeping the end of the foreskin snug to the glans. In its place, scar tissue forms.
Up to 15 square inches of skin and mucosa (inner foreskin) is also removed. Not only does this leave the glans and inner foreskin exposed to the elements, it removes most or all of the shaft skin mobility.
The frenulum, which pulls the foreskin up over the glans, may be completely or partially removed, or even left intact.
And perhaps most importantly, those who were circumcised as a child lost their genital integrity without their consent, for no important medical reason.
Q: What about the nerves I lost?
A: The new skin - inner and outer - that you grow will have the same nerve density as the inner and outer skin before circumcision. No nerve density is lost growing new skin. And any skin left after circumcision has its nerve density unaffected.
The special structure of the frenulum cannot be grown back if removed because it has nothing to grow from.
There is some debate about the ridged band being able to grow back as it hasn’t been completely proven that there is a higher nerve density there (or even if it’s a separate structure). However, even if there is a higher nerve density this post proposes a compelling argument that they may be able to come back at the higher density.
Peripheral nerves (any nerve that isn’t your brain and spinal cord) are resilient to injury and can readily grow nerves and receptors. As you grow new skin via restoration new nerves and receptors are grown, this is the same process that happens in response to any tissue growth. It’s why people who grow more skin, for example in pregnancy or obesity, do not report numbness or less sensitivity as they’ve grown more skin.
Q: How long will it take?
A: It varies depending on multiple factors, including the amount of skin remaining, desired results, and consistency in maintaining a proper restoring regiment. You should expect it to be a multi-year project, though most guys start seeing improvements within a few months.
Q: How old do I need to be in order to restore my foreskin?
A: From the medical professionals at Doctors Against Circumcision: There is no reason why a young person cannot restore their foreskin. Human skin responds to tension by expanding, cell by cell. It has nothing to do with hormones and would have no effect on other aspects of growth and maturation. Age does not matter. In fact, the younger, the better, as that’s when the body repairs itself rapidly.
The only problem with restoring as an adolescent or ‘tween’ is the discipline aspect-- it requires lots of motivation and discipline.
Q: So it’s just stretching the skin?
A: Nope! That’s a common misconception— You’re actually growing new skin cells through the process of natural cell division (of which mitosis is one phase) when you restore, but in order to trigger the process, the existing skin needs to be placed under tension by stretching whatever skin remains. It’s the same concept behind growing new skin for plastic surgery (except we’re not cutting it off to transplant it somewhere else).
Q: Do I need to buy a device?
A: Nope! Plenty of guys restore using only manual methods.
Q: Which method is best?
A: It’s really just a matter of personal opinion, but the most common methods tend to be: - dual tension - inflation - manual methods - T-tape
All of these options - and more - are covered in the Methods & Devices page of the Wiki.
The best method is the one you are able to stick with and gives you results, and many restorers use a combination of methods throughout their journey.
Q: What’s this thing called dekeratinization?
A: Keratinization is the response of epithelial tissue to chronic stress or trauma.
On the skin, including the shaft skin of the penis, the outer layer is called the epidermis. This skin has a perfectly normal layer of keratin that isn’t affected by foreskin restoration, although significant changes in sex and/or masturbation techniques are common, which may lessen the chronic stress and trauma suffered by this skin, leading to less keratinization.
The inner foreskin and glans are actually not covered by skin, but with mucosa, which is more like the tissue inside the mouth. This distinction is important, because mucosa isn’t designed for use on external surfaces of the body, so it lacks some of the protective capabilities of true skin.
Fortunately for those of us who have been circumcised, the mucosa of the glans and inner foreskin have an outer layer of epithelial tissue, so when exposed to the elements for long periods of time, they can also keratinize as a result of the chronic stress and trauma that they endure. This provides much needed protection for these tissues, at the cost of some or most of their natural sensitivity.
Also fortunately, when the glans and inner foreskin are restored to their natural configuration and in contact with each other 24/7, they are no longer subject to all that chronic stress and trauma, so they no longer need all that protection… and it comes off.
Some restorers report the keratinized tissue sloughing off in chunks, others hardly notice it happening as it is so gradual. It may happen quickly or slowly, but just about everyone who gets consistent glans coverage experiences the dekeratinization and resensitization of both the glans and inner foreskin.
Dekeratinization and resensitization of the glans and inner foreskin can also be accomplished before glans coverage is achieved, through the use of a retainer. Common retainers are either a silicone cone or o-ring, which are used to hold the foreskin in place over the glans before it will stay in place by itself. Restorers who are contemplating this technique should be aware that as the tissues re-sensitize they will need to be kept covered constantly.