CIRCUMCISION: POST-OP AND RECOVERY


​What happens during the days and weeks that immediately follow circumcision can deeply affect how your penis will end up looking and functioning in the long run. The 7 tips below, however, will help you obtain the best possible final result.
Disclaimer: this info is generic and may not be applicable to your specific case - whenever in doubt, don't hesitate to contact your doctor.

​1 - BANDAGE

The bandage with which you will leave the surgical room will probably feel very tight; this serves two purposes: protecting the wound and containing swelling.

The first bandage is usually removed at least 48 hours (2 days) but no more than 4 days after circumcision. This time frame is a compromise between keeping the area compressed for as long as practicable (in order to reduce swelling as fast as possible) and changing the dressing before it starts to stick too much to the healing wound.

​It helps a lot to remove the bandage while immersed in a warm (not hot though!) water tub. The gauze will probably be soaked with blood (specially the inner layers), and should be left underwater for a good while in order to avoid hurting the wound during removal. ​To remove it, follow the instructions prescribed by your doctor as they could be specific to the type of bandage used.

Your penis will be very swollen and look a bit frightening, but don't let it bring you down. This is a normal consequence of the anesthetic shots and surgical incisions, and the visual aspect tends to gradually improve during the course of the following weeks.
After the bandage has been removed, let the blood+water go down the drain and refill the tub with warm water (it's advisable to also add a bit of salt to the water, as this helps the healing process). Let your penis rest underwater for a few minutes (not too long though, just enough for the coagulated blood to become unstuck), dry it with gentle gauze pad taps and make a new bandage. Applying a light layer vaseline ointment will reduce the possibility of blood getting stuck to the skin inside the new bandage.

After this first change, ideally the bandage should be remade every two days until at least the half of the second week, and from then on only a thin gauze may or may not be used to keep protecting the stitches.

2 - UNDERWEAR

If you are a loose boxers type of guy, you'll feel the need for more support after circumcision, specially in the beginning. Use tighter underwear, ideally briefs: this will keep your penis well put in place, and reduce the discomfort and even pain that letting it hang around would cause due to contact friction.

It's also important to keep it pointing up during the first couple of weeks. This will apply some downward pressure to the blood flow and minimize swelling.

3 - NIGHT-TIME ERECTIONS

In order to reduce the effect of nocturnal erections (which pull and strain the stitches during the first nights), urinate before going to bed and go to the toilet often along the night. Ideally, do not sleep on your back, but on your side - it may also help to stay in a somewhat fetal position, with the knees slightly bent. Another tip is to fill a rubber thermal bottle with ice-cold water and keep it in contact with your penis. 

After the second or third weeks (when, normally, the stitches will no longer be present), however, erections are actually helpful, since they stimulate the skin's elasticity and make so that scar formation occurs at a wider circumference.

4 - STITCHES

The stitches (sutures in medical language) must stay in place long enough for the skin edges to bond together, but not too long (they must fall or be removed before the skin completely heals). In practice, what this means is that they must stay in place between 1 and 3 weeks. To leave them longer than that increases the risk that small marks or holes (suture tunnels) will end staying indefinitely on your skin.
Most doctors nowadays use self-dissolving stitches (which are absorbed by the organism, giving the impression that they "fall out" spontaneously); but, even in this case, ideally they should be removed manually if they haven't dissolved yet after 3 weeks.

You can go to the doctor to get the stitches removed or you can do this by yourself, following the steps below:
  • sanitize a pair of small sharp scissors and tweezers;
  • thoroughly wash your hands and penis;
  • carefully lift the knot of the first stitch using the pair of tweezers;
  • holding the scissors with your other hand, snip the suture next to the knot;
  • gently pull the stitch through and out of your skin using the tweezers (don't worry if some small bleeding occurs, but stop and go see your doctor if the bleeding is moderate);
  • proceed likewise with the remaining stitches, but stop if the two edges of skin that compose the scar show any sign of separation - this would mean that healing is not complete. If everything is OK you may continue removing all the stitches, or leave some of them for another day or two if you feel more comfortable this way.

5 - SWELLING

Post-surgical swelling is nothing more than an accumulation of blood, since it is via blood flow that are transported the nutrients required for the healing of the tissues injured by surgery. 

After circumcision, swelling usually disappears in up to two or three weeks. But it's not that uncommon for it persist after that, specially where the main incision was performed (below the head of the penis and around its whole circumference, just like a thick scarf would cover a person's neck).
In some cases this "scarf" swelling is almost imperceptible (specially when the penis is kept pointed upwards during the first weeks), but in others it not only stands out, but can also persist after the stitches have already been removed or fallen out, and in some rare cases can even persist for several months.

6 - SEX

Wait until at least 4 weeks after circumcision to engage in sexual intercourse. And, even after that, do not be in a hurry to get your sex life back to normal before a full recovery has been reached, specially if your penis still presents some degree of swelling.

​If you feel the need to “roast the broomstick” during the recovery process, try to employ masturbation techniques that stimulate areas other than the glans and scar, like squeezing the penis shaft or massaging the prostate. The use of a condom to protect the scar is also advisable if you feel an uncontrollable urge to masturbate.
After full recovery you cleared to practice sex with penetration, but a condom is still of utmost importance to avoid excessive friction at the scar until it's completely cheratinized (which can take from 2 to 3 months). And, even after that, the use of a condom continues to be very important, since it is the only way to be fully protected against sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).

7 - OTHER ACTIVITIES

It's highly recommended that you take some days off work or school after circumcision.

Normally a one-week certificate is given, but, depending on how your healing goes and the type of activity your job involves, it may be necessary more time to guarantee a satisfactory recovery.

Stay away from swimming, biking and any sort of contact sport until you have fully recovered from surgery.