Lifestyle

How to Make Your Penis Bigger: 7 Tips

July 18, 2022

Medically reviewed by

David Culpepper, MD

Like many issues of perception these days, pornography and pop culture have created unrealistic expectations about penis size – in both men and women.

It’s common for men to wonder about penis size and wish for a larger penis; interestingly, there may be some misperceptions about what men and women really want, however. A survey of 52,031 heterosexual men and women reported that only 55% of men were satisfied with their penis size, while 85% of women were satisfied with the size of their partner’s penis. In other words, guys may overly concerned about what their partner wants. 

Whatever you think about how big your penis should be, the truth is that the average penis size is between 5.1 and 5.5 inches when erect. If you're still unsatisfied with the size of your penis or sexual performance in general, there are a few options for making it larger, or at least making it appear larger. Here are 7 ways guys can try to get a larger penis.

Penile Implants

Undergoing surgery to install a permanent implant under the skin of the penis has been available for decades as a treatment for men with incurable erectile dysfunction. However, in 2004 the FDA approved a silicone sleeve implant that can increase penile length and girth, known as Penuma.

The cost is steep, around $13,000, and patients will be at risk for infections or implant breakage. 

Nevertheless, one study in the Journal of Sexual Medicine looked into the cases of 400 men who received the Penuma implants. They found that 56.7% experienced an increase in girth, and two years after surgery 81% of them reported either “high” or “very high” satisfaction. Sexual medicine specialists are mixed on recommending this kind of invasive intervention.

Plastic Surgery

Some surgeons will offer to lengthen the size of a man’s penis by cutting a certain ligament, which can help the penis hang a little further out of the body. This procedure comes with a few serious risks, such as scar tissue, painful erections, infections, or a loss of penile sensation and even function. In addition, it typically costs around $10,000, and some studies have shown the procedure only adds about half an inch of length, failing to meet expectations for most patients. It can also be difficult to maintain an erection and actually achieve penetration after penile plastic surgery. 

Stretching Devices

One of the more common examples of this method is the penis pump. This cylinder shaped, air filled chamber attaches to your penis shaft and, using a manual or electric vacuum pump, helps to produce an immediate erection. Anecdotes suggest that consistent use may eventually increase penis length.

Penile traction devices are a popular solution as well. These devices pull on your penis in order to modify its curvature. 

These devices can be worn daily underneath your clothes and are intended to gradually stretch your penis to add length and girth. The research on various penis stretching techniques is limited, with no studies pointing to a single effective way to permanently lengthen the penis. 

A few methods could lead to a temporary size increase. One 2010 review concluded that men using the Andropenis stretching device saw an increase in size with extended daily use. These participants used the device for six hours every day, for four months, and gained anywhere from 1.8 to 3.1 centimeters in length. 

Using A Penis Pump

  1. Place the penis inside the empty chamber.
  2. Use the pump mechanism to remove the air and create a vacuum inside the cylinder. This process will pull blood into the penis and cause it to become erect.
  3. Attach the ring or clamp to the base of the penis in order to help keep blood in the penis and maintain the erection (for no more than 30 minutes). Sex or masturbation is safe during this period.
  4. Remove the ring when finished, prior to 30 minutes, or based on the pump manufacturer's guidance.

Using A Traction Device

  1. Insert the penis into the base of the device.
  2. Secure the head of the penis into the two notches at the opposite end.
  3. Fasten the provided tube around the shaft of the penis. 
  4. Grip the ends of the tube on the bottom of the device while slowly pulling the penis outward. 
  5. Follow manufacturer's guidelines about how long to leave the penis in this stretched position.

Shave Your Pubic Hair

This one is a bit of a workaround, but can be an effective way to change the appearance of the penis. If you aren’t thrilled about having surgery, getting injections, or using various stretching exercises, you can make your penis look bigger by simply shaving your pubic hair. As simple as it sounds, the more hair surrounding your penis, the less visible the base will be, making the penis appear shorter in length. 

Stretching Exercises

Some manual stretching exercises involve using your hand to massage the tissue along the length of the penis, the goal being to stretch the skin and create “micro-tears” in the tissue that will theoretically add length whenever they heal, making your penis appear longer. Other exercises, such as jelqing, also center around massaging penis tissues. The research is limited as to whether these stretching techniques work, though they've gained popularity online in recent history. Most sexual medicine specialists and physicians will recommend against these techniques due to the risk of injuring yourself.

Common stretching methods include:

Manual Stretching Steps

  1. Grip the head of the penis.
  2. Pull the penis upwards, stretching it out for around 10 seconds.
  3. Pull the penis to the right for an additional 10 seconds, then do the same thing to the left.
  4. Repeat these steps daily.

Another method is:

  1. Grip the head of the penis.
  2. Pull the penis upward while pressing on the area around the base of the penis at the same time. 
  3. Hold this position for a few seconds.
  4. Repeat these steps with the penis pulled to the right, applying pressure on the left side of the base of the penis.
  5. Repeat these steps with the penis pulled to the left, applying pressure on the right side of the base of the penis.
  6. Repeat this exercise daily for a few minutes.

In order to “jelq” the penis:

  1. Use the index finger and thumb to make an “O” shape.
  2. Place the O shape at the base of the penis.
  3. Continue to make the O shape smaller until you feel mild pressure on the penis shaft.
  4. Slowly move the finger and thumb toward the head of the penis until reaching the tip. Reduce the pressure if you start to feel pain.
  5. This process is repeated once a day. 

Platelet Rich Plasma Injections

Compared to some of these other procedures, this is a fairly new method for penis enlargement. Platelet rich plasma injections involve separating plasma from your drawn blood and injecting it back into your penis in order to stimulate blood flow and increase the size of the penis. The shot will include mechanical pumping over the course of several weeks, which is intended to stretch the suspensory ligament in order to increase length and improve blood circulation. Some of these shots may include stem cells and exosomes.

There is currently not enough completed research to determine whether this method is effective or safe.

Lose Some Weight

While weight loss will not influence the actual size of your penis, it can make it appear larger. Similar to the way that shaving pubic hair will make the penis appear larger, losing fat in your belly and thighs can give the appearance of a larger penis.

The Takeaway

Increasing penis size can be a difficult and costly procedure that comes with limited results. There are several surgeries that can make the penis larger, and stretching exercises have limited effect and include some risk of damage. Shaving your pubic hair and losing weight are two of the easiest ways to make the penis appear larger. 

Here's the thing: chances are you're overthinking your penis size. Based on survey data, most sexual partners are just fine with the size of their partner's penis, and men's infatuation with their penis size is mostly self-imposed. Before you undertake any kind of intended penis enhancement interventions, consider the risks and have realistic expectations.

If your issue is about sexual performance or erectile dysfunction specifically, there are great, affordable options available. Viagra® and Cialis® have been approved and used by millions of men for two decades, and they're more accessible than ever thanks to telemedicine platforms like Rex MD.

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