I broke my frenulum last night whilst having sex with my girlfriend. It didn't hurt that much, but there was a popping/snapping noise, and looking at it, it's clearly torn. Wondering what I should do, it stings a little if I touch it but otherwise fine. Previously I've never had any problems, or thought it to be 'too short', but is it possible to keep it 'broken' as such so it doesn't happen again?

For now, try not to irritate it, but don't baby it either. You might apply an antibiotic ointment one time, and then work the foreskin regularly so the skin won't toughen up. Avoid sexual contact until things are healed. In fact, you really shouldn't be having sex at all without using a condom. Do you know that?

Have you been sexually active for a while? Perhaps the heat of the moment speeded thing up??
No harm will probably come from this incidence if it heals well.

Thanks for that. Should that say without using a condom, or is it meant to say with, just double checking.
I've been sexually active for quite a few months now.
It seems to be fine at the moment, I'm making sure I keep it clean, what sort or antibitic ointment would you recommend?

LOL! I guess I should have rested up more before tackling answering the questions here. Yes, by all means, USE a condom.

If you have been sexually active for a few months, I wonder why you didn't have a problem with this earlier. What changed?

You may have avoided the point - you are using condoms? Presumably you are fairly young - and I suspect, not desiring the "joys" of fatherhood (or maintenance) at this juncture.

As you may note in my comments today to this thread (to "Jen"), I recommend you lose the concept of using "antibiotics" to "heal" skin problems. If you want a protective, then Vaseline as I mention here below may be helpful. If you ever needed anything more, then Zinc and Castor Oil (the original - and best, also the cheapest - "nappy" or "diaper" cream) is very effective.

In this circumstance, you certainly do want your frænulum to heal up in the "broken" or lengthened state. So in fact, you need to retract fairly frequently (if you do not do so already - every time you pee, for example) to deliberately prevent it healing to the original state.

A tiny dab of Vaseline will help the process, in particular by preventing scabbing (and stinging). And as soon as it has visibly heal over, you should do some initially gentle stretches along the lines we always recommend here.

Interestingly, I am not going to suggest you should be avoiding sexual contact with the young lady (I am of course, presuming you to be young ) any longer than letting it visibly heal over, and if you are desperate then along the above lines gentle masturbation (by self or her with clean and healthy hands) need not be out of the question even before that. In other words, if it tears further, it does tend to favour healing eventually with the necessary "slack". As you might see I have frequently pointed out that this is really no worse than the young lady's hymen being torn at some stage, which people consider to be quite normal or indeed even laudable!

Actually, I a pretty sure Jim means that you should not be having sex at all without using a condom.

We generally use condoms but every now and then we don't, she is on the pill though (I know, still not 100% protection). It happens that the time I broke my frenulum we didn't use a condom.

So far seems to be healing quite well, and doesn't appear to be joining up at all (although I am aware it's still only been a couple days). I have been retracing fairly frequently, ie when I go to the toilet/have a shower.

And yes, I am young.

You need the protection each and every time, so from now on, do it. There is one called Pleasure Plus that you'd like. They're a little pricey, but you get more pleasure.

Where are you located?

I know i should be, I try to, but it can ruin the mood sometimes if you have to stop, but I know that's no excuse, I'm not disagreeing with you, it's my wrong doing.

I live in Australia, on that note, just a general question, where are you and Paul from?

I'm in California.

OK, so we "harp" on the condoms. There are actually two reasons, one of which is as a "back-up" to contraception other than the Implanon® implant which - dare I say it - is virtually 100% reliable (except for epileptics). The "pill" is severely limited by the need for the woman to take it reliably, or if she develops a gastro-intestinal illness, and either of these can be a big problem.

The other is - of course - protection from sexually-transmitted diseases (STDs or STIs). If you really trust that your girlfriend has never had sex with anyone else, and you honestly know you have not, then you can perhaps justify unprotected sex. If however either of these is not the case, then you simply cannot because most STIs are completely invisible - you can have them, you can pass them on, and never be aware of it. In particular I am referring to the viruses that in some cases, albeit only a small proportion, cause cervical cancer in women.

These may represent an exceedingly small risk to heterosexual men, but if you acquire one from one woman (who has in turn acquired it from someone else), and then pass it on to another, perhaps years later (because the fact is, relationships often do break up), then you really are not doing her a favour, or anyone else to whom she passes it on in future.

And this is the very real truth. These diseases only exist because they are transferred from one person to another during sex. If people only ever had one partner, these diseases (including but not only HPV - Human Papilloma Virus) could not and would not exist. But they do, and that proves something which impacts on you as much as anyone else.

Other than that little rant, good work!