You know those last few drops of urine that you just can’t seem to ‘shake’ after you empty your bladder? The ones that land in your underwear or stain your pants? Well no you aren’t a freak, no your penis isn’t broke, and yes, it affects every guy. But there is a way to fully empty your old fella so that you’re not left sheltering your crotch post-bathroom visit.
Although reports of “post-void dribbling” vary, it has been reported to occur in up to 30 per cent of young men, with the incidence increasing the older you get. And sometimes, no matter how hard you shake, the urinary tract always retains that last drop and it’s down to the design of the penis.
“Most of the difficulty comes from the male anatomy—the penis and the prostatic urethra—which make up the sort of passageway to the penis that is actually quite long. The phallus can be several inches and the prostate a few inches on top of that,” said Dr. Ben Brucker, Assistant Professor of Urology and Obstetrics & Gynecology at NYU Langone Medical Cente, talking to Thrillist about the problem.
To empty this residual urine, the reported most effective method is called “urethral milking”. To do this, take your index finger and place it in the area between your scrotum and your rectum. Apply gently pressure and move your finger forward, up over the scrotum, and to the base of your penis, effectively draining any liquid that remains. Do this 3 times and then ‘milk’ your penis, gently squeezing from the base to the tip.
“Theoretically the more space someone has [in their penis], the more volume that can potentially get trapped. Usually it’s only a few drops of urine, but when you take the time to allow those drops to come out as opposed to running out of the bathroom, you can fix the problem,” says Dr. Brucker.