The origins of my BXO

I've talked about many different treatments on here. I've also speculated about how each treatment might work (attacking vs healing) a lot. But the one thing I haven't really considered is that BXO is thought to be a condition symptomatic of some deeper issue. What's the relationship? Well, if you identify what that deeper issue is and address it, it's quite possible that your body will heal by itself. You might try a range of treatments, and they will work. You'll attribute that progress to the treatments. But in actual fact, had you not used anything at all, you would still have made progress.

Some days, I consider the possibility that this could well describe my situation. I'm absolutely convinced that my problem was caused by urine getting trapped underneath the foreskin. Why do I say this? Because I recall some time around January 2011 noticing dampness at the front of my underwear. It was a new phenomenon, and I realised it was coming from small drops of urine dripping from my urethra after urinating. That was probably when it all began for me. I didn't really think anything of that, and it's probably not a big issue in and of itself. But because it was a change from how I had been in the years before that, my body was forced to react to a situation it didn't have previously.

I knew I had that issue, and didn't think anything of it, and as a result I wasn't alarmed when I noticed my foreskin and glans appearing more white (like skin gets when it's wet). When the skin was wet with urine constantly, it was somehow damaged, resulting in BXO forming, which is white in colour anyway. Hence why I never noticed it progressing. It was, so I thought, just a consequence of having urine under my foreskin. Which, in a way, is exactly what it was. But of course, BXO is so much more than that. It's not a condition that goes away as the skin dries. But it creeps up so incredibly slowly that you don't notice the detrimental effects it has upon you.

If I look back over the last four and a half months, I've tried everything from A to Z. Everything works, and nothing works fast. But the one thing that has been constant the entire time has been me keeping the skin dry. I sometimes wonder if this alone would have yielded a similar result. While I started attacking my BXO in June, I had been doing a range of different things between January and June that resulted in one small area of BXO affected skin being exposed to the air much sooner than the rest. It's very interesting that this is now one of the first areas to be returning fully to normal. That particular patch of skin had a head start of around 5 months, and it was 5 months of no treatment whatsoever, other than being exposed to the air and probably keeping drier.

I've read lots of comments from people saying keeping the area dry is paramount. I've also seen lots of reports that BXO tends to occur more often in men over a particular age. Perhaps that's because, as age sets in, the tendency for urine to drip after urination becomes more frequent.

I'm now rotating my treatments as I see fit. Tea Tree Oil is the primary treatment, but when pain or discomfort sets in, I use gentler treatments like Creme Complete or Moisturiser. I haven't used Manuka Honey for a while, nor Hydrogen Peroxide or Nappy Rash powder. I've tapered back on Clobetasol too.

The one thing I will say is that the inner skin and, in particular, the glans, appears to be the most stubborn skin there is when it comes to healing. You'll notice that the updates are not as frequent from me. Progress is very slow. I'm still estimating this will take 6-8 months from the first treatment (mid June 2014) to get back to an almost indistinguishable look, but the glans is perhaps the one area that might take a little longer.

I haven't said this before, but as I'm getting a few readers here I really should now. If you have any questions, feel free to comment and I'll do my best to respond.