Q: I am 26 years old and have been married for 5 months. My wife & I have been trying to have intercourse but have not been able to. My penis is not circumcised, so when I move away the foreskin from the head of the penis, it becomes sensitive. When I try to insert, it causes slight pain thereby causing me to lose erection. Is there any medicine to lose this sensitivity? My wife also feels the pain, since her vagina is tight. How can this be prevented? Should we use any lubrication gel?

A:Inability to consummate the marriage is more common than is generally acknowledged and can be due to a variety of factors (isolated or in combination): 1. Difficulty in retracting the foreskin during erection (phimosis) 2. Improper technique of penetration due to lack of knowledge 3. Tight hymen or vaginal spasm in the female partner 4. Anxiety associated with intercourse In such circumstances, it is essential that you get yourself evaluated by a urologist and your wife by a gynecologist so that the right treatment can be started based on the results of the evaluation. Effective treatment in such circumstances is successful in a vast majority of such problems.