Okay, so this has worried me a LOT. I’ve had bad dreams about it ever since I bent my penis a little too far downwards. Don’t ask how! I’ve had nightmares about rolling over in the night and … snap. So I decided to research it.

Turns out it’s not as common as a broken arm, but it CAN happen.

The penis doesn’t have a bone in it so the word ‘break’ or ‘fracture’ is not quite right. But nonetheless it is actually called a ‘penile fracture’.

What keeps your penis hard is lots of blood. It rushes into the surrounding tissue and the pressure grows. That makes your penis rigid and hard to bend. So if there is some kind of force it can lead to pressure overload.

My overload was just painful – but if it actually ruptures, you will hear a cracking sound, feel intense pain, and experience immediate swelling and bruising. Very much like fractures that in real bones. Sometimes, blood may even appear at the tip.

The most common way to get a penile fracture is during very active sex – which rules me out!

But it can happen in other ways. One is rolling over in bed in the middle of the night while you have an erection – my biggest worry right now. Some guy was apparently rushing to get dressed one morning and snap. I shudder to imagine that scenario.

The good news is that penile fractures can only happen when you have an erection.

When it’s soft it bends easily and can withstand unexpected force. The problem is I am getting erections all the time these days...

If you think you have injured your penis in any way, contact your doctor immediately. But don’t wait for a serious or painful incident before you take care of your sexual health. Visit a clinic if you notice something unusual about your penis and need answers.