Sex Question of the Week: Does being circumcised impact my sex life?
I’m a 37 year old man who is recently divorced and just getting back into the swing of things with the dating scene. I’m also starting to have sex again for the first time in a long time, since my wife and I stopped having sex more than two years before we separated, and I never cheated. Recently on a date a woman asked me if I was circumcised and started going on about how circumcised men are missing out, because they lack sensation. Is this true? Is there research on this subject?
Circumcision is definitely a hot button topic, and whether you’re talking about the issue of circumcising newborn boys or the impact of circumcision on adult sexuality, everyone seems to have an opinion, and has no problem letting you know what it is.
The short answer to your question is that there is an impact of circumcision on sexuality, and there has been some research what this impact is.
Unfortunately, there are many problems with the research on circumcision and sex which offer contradictory results that raise as many questions as they answer.
One thing I can suggest is to start taking apart the very big question about whether or not being circumcised impacts your sexuality, and start asking more specific questions, like how circumcision impacts your physical sensation, or how circumcision impacts your sexual feelings and experience of pleasure, or finally, how circumcision might be impacting your sexual behaviors. Even though there may be similarities between men, your answers to these questions need to be your own, but asking the question is the first step.
Read more – About sex and circumcision
Comments
RE: sex and circumcision.. two men in my life are NOT circumcized and I can tell you that the woman who commented on lack of sensation was soooooo wrong. These men are not lacking any sensation.. in fact, they feel that because the head of the penis is covered, it is MORE sensitive.
well, i was circumcised at age 30. sex before and after this has been an eye opener! before sex was wonderful. afterword, it we good. for whatever reason there is. sex was more pleasureable before. the sensations were less ‘rough’ durring intercourse. i dont know how anyone would circumcise their baby boys intentionally with what i have experienced.
it should be outlawed.
In the article called: Does circumcision impact sexuality? It says: “One of the most controversial and difficult issues parents in the West face is whether or not to circumcise their male newborns.” What is meant by the West? The USA is the only country in the western world where neonatal male circumcision is routine procedure. While Manitoba is the only Canadian province in which the majority of male infants is circumcised. In W-Europe and N-Europe neonatal male circumcision is a rare phenomenon.
Hi Dani,
Thanks for asking for clarification on this point. My comment about “in the West” was meant to reflect the fact that public debate (including journal articles and books) seems to happen in Canada and the U.S. (even though the numbers may be lower in Canada, there are plenty of people on both side of the debate who are talking about it, which creates a climate of confusion for many parents). I used the “west” as shorthand, which may not be clear enough.
Parents- please please do not mutilate your sons. In my experience, sex with men with foreskins is much better- the glans of the penis is closer to the level of sensitivity of a clitoris by leaving the skin on, the glans is protected and not rubbing on clothes.
I’m a circumcised 22 year old, and Michele i don’t think you know what your talking about, i was circumcised due to the fact my foreskin was too tight to pull back, making sex and masturbation previously a very painful ordeal! Yea ok my penis is less sensitive now but thats the way it has to be for me unfortunately. Dave you sound like you don’t know what your talking about either, suggesting it should be outlawed!!! It’s an essential medical proceedure for some people if they wish to have pleasurable sex!
Pete, I think the issue is about cutting sexual tissue from non-consenting minors, not medically necessary circumcision, or circumcision chosen by an adult. Virtually all men, given the choice, decide to keep their penis in the default state. That should tell parents something about their “choice.” An important issue that circumcisers won’t address is the thousands of men in the U.S. whose circumcisions amounted to genital mutilation: partial glans amputation, extensive skin bridges, hairy shaft, urethral laceration, and worse. Several boys die every year in the U.S. from the so-called complications of circumcision.