masterbation scars

im 18 and i learned from a early age how to masterbate. I did it alot and when i masterbated i would do it dry. now i have scaring from it and im am woundering if you can help me and give me away to get rid of these scars so i can have more confedence in myself. thank you for your time

[Janice M Epp, PhD]

Hi.

I don't know what you mean by "scarred." Are you thinking that you somehow injured your penis because you didn't use lubrication during self-pleasuring? I can't imagine how you could create such an injury, but I guess anything is possible.

However, I believe you're actually mistaken. The disclorations on your penis were probably not caused by self-pleasuring. There are two areas of discoloration that can occur on penis: 1) If you've been circumsized, there's a scar around the glans (glands)--or head. Any man who has circumsized has this scar. 2) ALL men have a line down the underside of their penis, extended down through the testicles. This is called the Raphe line. Some are more obvious than others. This is one of those little-known but miraculous sex factoids.

It is the result of a fetal developmental phenomenon whereby the scrotum (the developmental equivalent of the labia in females) and penis close toward the midline and fuse. All male mammal embryos initially start off as female. You might say “female” is the default setting. It takes something extra (androgens) for males to differentiate as male around the sixth week of embryonic development. Once androgens (most notably, testosterone) kick in, the vagina seals up and your penis and testicles form. That line is the scar left behind when everything seals up. BTW: all birds and reptiles are just the opposite: male is the default setting.

I wonder if you feel that somehow your penis isn't attractive because of this line or because of the circumcision scar? Please know that ALL penises have some discoloration--it's perfectly fine.

On the other hand, if you have additional discolorations or scarring that worry you, you might want to see a urologist to determine whether you've suffered an injury. Dr. J