A common question for those interested in starting to restore their foreskin is how to start restoring.

Many men restore because two things will happen. First, foreskin restoration will result in a reasonable facsimile of a foreskin. And, second, foreskin restoration will increase sensitivity by allowing the glans and inner foreskin remnant to return to their normal, mucosal state. But it is not all about sensitivity, the foreskin has a gliding action that better stimulates the sensitive bits. The second happens normally as a consequence of the first, but many men want to speed it up. I originally did not want to regain my sensitivity until I had enough skin to protect my newly sensitive glans. But, I regained some sensitivity before I had enough skin. And, it was very irritating having my sensitive glans rubbing against my clothing.

How to start restoring depends upon what is valued more, skin or sensitivity.

I wanna grow some SKIN!

If you want skin, you need to start tugging. Foreskin restorers grow skin by inducing mitosis. Mitosis is induced by tugging the skin so that it stretches to its elastic limit. So much for the science lesson.

When starting foreskin restoration, the penile shaft skin is typically not very mobile. There may be adhesions at the circumcision scar that holds the skin on the shaft to the inner sheath. The skin may not be very flexible because there may not be very much. If you are like most men, you probably have tight shaft skin when you are erect.

Many methods and devices are available for tugging.

A good way to start restoring your foreskin is to use Manual Tugging Method 2. Manual tugging allows beginners to become intimately familiar with their penis in a way that they never have before. Manual tugging will quickly break down any adhesions from the circumcision scar. And, it will rapidly increase shaft skin mobility.

While manual tugging, the beginning restorer can take his time to investigate the various devices and routines to find a tugging method and routine that is comfortable and fits your lifestyle.

Manual tugging takes only a few minutes at a time and can be done whenever you have some privacy. Manual tugging will quickly break down your adhesions and increase your skin mobility and flexibility. These changes are usually seen almost immediately if you have a tight cut. The changes are great motivation for continuing to restore.

Manual Tugging Method 2 uses both hands to tension the skin on the shaft of the penis. Briefly, you wrap your thumb and index finger of one hand around the shaft of your penis near your circ scar. You wrap your thumb and index finger of the other hand around the shaft of your penis near your glans (the head of the penis). Move your hands apart so that your shaft skin is stretched tight. Hold for 5 to 20 seconds and release. Wait a few seconds and repeat. The whole tugging session can last from one minute to a half hour. It is up to you. A good initial tugging routine is to manual tug when you get up in the morning, when you take a shower, each time you go to the bathroom, and when you are watching television or even surfing the net (like when you are reading my blog). A minute or two at a time is sufficient, but you can tug for longer if you have time. I think it important to have several tugging sessions per day.

Manual tugging is not for everyone. Alternatives to manual tugging for beginners include the canister method, cross-taping, and t-tape. Many have started with these methods with great results. They all require medical tape, though. There are numerous tapeless devices, but a beginning restorer usually does not have enough slack skin to wear a device comfortable. The one device that requires the least amount of skin to use is the TLC Tugger.

Cross-taping is usually good only for a short period. If you have a tight cut, cross-taping forces the skin towards the glans. After the skin grows, there will be less tension and less skin growth. Some men use a packer to increase the tension. Cross-taping is also used for increasing sensitivity. There is more on that below.

Give me that SENSITIVITY!

It is possible to get the benefit of increases sensitivity within a short time. Many opt to do this because they are not sure that foreskin restoration is real (It is).

To regain the sensitivity of the glans and inner foreskin remnant, they must be protected just as if you had your original foreskin. Over a period of weeks to months, the covered glans will dekeratinize and become as sensitive it it should be.

The natural penis has a foreskin that typically covers the glans. The glans is an internal organ. The glans and inner foreskin have a covering of mucous membrane, which is the same type of tissue as in your mouth and under your eyelid. Circumcision removes the foreskin and the glans and inner foreskin remnant are then exposed. As a baby, they rub against your diaper. As you grew up, your glans rubbed against your shorts and bed sheets. Over time, they developed a calloused layer or keratinized. The same way that callouses on your hands make your hands less sensitive, the callous layer on your penis makes your penis less sensitive. 

To dekeratinize your penis, you must protect your glans and inner foreskin 24/7. An easy way to do this is to pull your shaft skin forward so that it covers your glans. Since someone just starting restoring typically does not have much skin, a common method employed is cross-taping. Not only will the glans be protected, but, if the skin is tight, it will also be tensioned enough to grow, at least initially. Cross-taping is where your skin is pulled forward and a piece of tape is placed from one side of your penis to the other, covering the opening of your skin tube. A second piece of tape is placed cross-wise to the first. The tape prevents the skin from retracting. Soem men use bandaids instead of tape.

Another way is to wear a baby bottle nipple retainer. A silicone baby bottle nipple can be cut up to make a perfect retainer. That is my preferred retainer. When my sensitivity increased to the level where the rubbing against my shorts was irritating, I wore a baby bottle nipple retainer all day and all night. After my skin grew to where my glans was covered during the day, I only wore the retainer to bed to protect against nocturnal erections. As my skin grows even longer, I hope to stop wearing a retainer completely.

Yet another way is to wear a Your-Skin Restoration Cone sold by TLC Tugger. I have two cones and wear one when I misplace my other retainers or I want to mix things up.

Some guys make a tape ring or a tapeless ring to wear as a retainer. To make a tape ring, a several inch length of tape (about 1/4 to 1/2 inch wide) is wrapped around the tip of the foreskin that protrudes past the glans. A tapeless tape ring is a piece of tape made into a ring with the sticky side out, with another piece of tape with the sticky side in on top of the first piece. This forms a ring that can be slipped over the end of the foreskin that extends past the glans. The tape does not stick to your skin.

A new product is the Miracle Restoration Spray that holds your skin forward with a silicone adhesive. The spray is applied to the glans and the foreskin is rolled up. The spray is sticky enough to hold the foreskin forward over the glans. It is the next best thing to having a natural foreskin. But, the spray requires that there be enough skin to easily cover the glans. The spray will not be useful for someone new to restoring unless they have a very loose cut.

Wearing a retainer will not do much for growing new skin, but it does wonders for regaining sensitivity lost by having an exposed glans. There will be some growth when wearing a retainer, depending upon how much tension the retainer applies to your skin. Skin tension goes up when you have an erection, so maybe the secret is to have lots of erections!

Keep on Tugging!

The secret to restoring your foreskin is to find a method that fits into your lifestyle. Then do it for a month and it will become a habit.

Foreskin restoration is a long process. I manual tug and I find that the daily effort is low. The results are definitely worth every tug.
 

References:
 

• Coverage index for determining the tightness of a circumcision
• The Real Coverage Index describes stages of foreskin growth
• Measuring foreskin restoration progress
   
• Restoration Device/Product Comparison A good comparison chart with links to the device pages
• Manual Tugging Method 2
• Cross-Taping and Tape Rings
• Illustrated guide to cross-taping by NORM- Phoenix
• greg_b's T-Tape strips and inserts: An Illustrated Guide (right-click to download pdf file)
• Baby bottle nipple retainers
• Tapeless foreskin restoring devices
   
• Beginner's Guide How To Restore Foreskin
• Restoring Foreskin.org
• Foreskin Restoration / Intactivism Network and forum