Please see the revised pinned guidance post on the front page. Pictures are no longer allowed on the forum
Pictures on the forum: Please see the... - Men's Health Foru...
Pictures on the forum
58 Replies
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Why?
I'm sure because someone had to ruin it for everyone most likely the minors that were posting pictures and weren't old enough
Just as an alternative there’s a subreddit for circumcisions that allows pictures (it seems like the majority of posts here are for that). There’s also a phimosis one but it has become quite divisive in the community. Not sure about for other conditions though.
I find the pictures so helpful. That’s unfortunate really.
The stricter vetting system sounds pretty excellent...how would that system work?
Idk because they could still lie
Well I notice Osidge has been trying to moderate photos for some time now. I guess collectively, they've had enough of pleading with members to have discretion.
Indeed the photo attachment options were meant to be used in the correct way...
That’s really a shame! The pictures really helped us look at the problems and try to give good help! Oh well
disappointing 👎
Most posting about penis/testicle/sexual health will now become pointless because descriptions will be far more dangerously vague than photographs and it will now become much harder to express an opinion on sentences (or, have the slightest idea what to tell the describer), where it was far easier, on pictures.
A guy who innocently wishes to show a picture of an anomaly on his penis could, before, at least hear somebody say that they have exactly the same thing and be made to feel less stressed. Nobody will be able to do that with the written word. Chances are, this section has just become pointless, and maybe doomed!
Unfortunately, this helpful page will probably disappear because it’s difficult to describe a physical condition with words when a picture is more helpful . A concern about a circumcision healing can often be observed as “normal”’by others who have gone through the procedure. Osidge, thanks for your time as moderator.
This is extremely disappointing. The pictures have been extremely helpful and supportive to people going through some difficult times.
Unfortunately the new guidance won't help in anyway to support. This will be just friendly mental guidance to ask your local GP or nurse more help. Just even cropped picture tells more than 1000 words. This is my two eurocents.
This will cut the power of Men's Health Forum (Penis Health) and retard it back to level of telephone chat and text based forums. They were quite popular here in Finland in '90s. 
in reply to S2BC
We are not here to diagnose or prescribe treatment. That is part of the reason guys do not go to the docs. We are here for all the types of support that you going on other HU forums.
Understand the inappropriateness of some photos (e.g. “look at me 12 months on and how lovely I look”) type images which must be very frustrating for moderators but most entries have genuine intent with a concern or question behind them or merely seek reassurance. I’ve found it very helpful being able to see pictures of otherwise described conditions and benchmark post-op progress. It’s why I joined 2 months ago ahead of my own circumcision. Sadly I think the forum will now fizzle out as a consequence.
in reply to
You will be pleased to know that membership is increasing and the posts are still coming in and support liked.
in reply to
Long may it continue
Hi , I usually don't speak out during such issues but I feel that we need to back up a little. The issue is very small but the effect can be catastrophic . A single under 18 year old user who posts photos of his genitals on this forum even if for medical help can jeopardize the whole site and it's administrators. It is UK law that even if the person accidentally comes upon such photos or material he is liable to be charged .
I am not trying to side with anyone but I can understand that since the site cannot enforce a compulsory age proof check , it can as well remove the option of sharing pics to protect its future . For all of you out there saying that you have the right knowledge and without photos it would be very difficult to give actual help , I understand the plight you guys are in but I don't think we can do much in this matter. Just one user cirucumventing the age field is putting this site at risk and can eventually cause it to be banned and removed. I myself have reported 5-6 users as such and I do believe the next time round they will just fake the age obviously.
So I feel even if it is for the greater good and if it means that this site will still be there in the future without a risk of trespassing or accidentally breaking any laws , still helping ppl , we should be thankful . I am not asking anyone to agree or disagree with me but I really have found lots of help and some good acquaintances here . It would be a sham for one user to cause a downfall for this site. Hope there is some other way the age parameter could be verified. Well this is just what I think . Cheers !
How about moderators create a medical reference set of photos for the most common concerns and examples instead of users posting. That way people who aren’t sure have a reference point.
My best example was that growing up, no one, absolutely NO ONE told me foreskin should freely moved over the glans. Wasn’t in any sex Ed class, nothing. For over 30 years I thought I was a “normal” uncircumcised. Sexual function has no issues at all, no UTI’s, no hygiene issues either. It wasn’t until I met someone who spoke about themselves getting cut and why, that I realised I wasn’t normal.
Please give men every avenue to learn because sexual education for us is assumed.
BEST IDEA, YET, DDMP! "How about moderators create a medical reference set of photos for the most common concerns and examples instead of users posting. That way people who aren’t sure have a reference point."
in reply to IanHaines
That resource already exists all over the internet and, of course, at doctors and hospitals. I often go to respected internet sources in giving support.
Sign up for Reddit and search for “circumcision . “ There are several related groups.
We're getting a little harsh, guys. Osidge might be responding to a directive from above Moderator level. Be moderate in response to a Moderator's predicament. I'd be willing to bet that the Moderator HATED having to do this extreme measure, to protect the site/forum. Work with.
Those penis pictures are essential to inter-member(!) understanding and the recognition of a condition. There is the danger that under-aged penises might be putting in appearances, in among the correct age group of willing weenies. The respect and reputation of the site/forum must be remembered. There might simply be no such thing as the perfect answer to this situation.
Legal advice must be sought from solicitors, by the owners of this site/forum, as to their legal standing if an under-aged dickie slips in...
[I've got to start choosing my words more carefully!]
...and, this will show that an attempt was made to legalise the future posting of photographs, or to adequately convey the ridiculous DIFFICULTY in deciding how old a penis is - when they don't have rings around them, all the way down, or a date stamp like a library book!
Hi Guys. I thought it best just to let the people expected to voice their opinions do so. Where are we now? Well there are obviously those who blame everything on me and that's fine if you want to do so. I really do not make the decisions although I do take part in regular catch-up video conferences. Within those conferences it is my role to update on issues within the forum. The constant problems have been varied.
a) Underage posters - although things have improved and, despite reminders, members still interact with them. I remember when I first volunteered my time to moderate the forums, posts from under 16 year olds and those under 18 and posting pics attracted more participants than other posts!
b) Cosmetic posts - although this is a forum for penis health, a lot of the posts are from those who have no *penis* health problem. I have endeavoured to stop that with mixed success. Again, at the outset of my time as moderator, I put forward for discussion the view that there may be mental health issues involved with the desire for cosmetic surgeries. I was trounced for that. No way was it a mental health issue. Come along a few months and my needing to take a tougher line on the issue, now all of a sudden anyone who wants to talk about a non penis health issue has a mental health problem and I am pushing people into depression and putting them at risk of self-harming. I kid you not. People must either be new members or not realise that my memory is reasonable.
c) Posts with pics that are not necessary - These range from people posting a pic of the top side of their penis whilst asking a question about the lower side, people posting pics that are so bad that they show nothing, the "I got circumcised 2 years ago - isn't my penis nice" to those who obviously cannot be bothered to describe their problem, or have no problem, and are just checking to see if anyone can spot something they cannot spot. Part of the problems with these are that people do not get to know the way to describe their own penis and, are in effect, using this as surrogate doctor's surgery. That is not what the forum is and neither is it what HealthUnlocked is about. It is also not prudishness.
d) Guys who beat the messenger - I have been called an old busybody, a camp old bitch and a gay pedophile and of course, from my friend above, an authoritarian big brother; among other things. Why do people think that they have the right to treat me in that way? I volunteer to keep the forum on track in accordance with the rules and I am subject to that sort of treatment. I moderated a diabetes forum for 5 years and was never on the receiving end of such treatment. HealthUnlocked have been less than impressed by such sad and bad behaviour.
So the decision to completely ban pics is really down to the vocal minority and those who refuse to stick to the rules. IT IS NOT MY RULE! Since the ban was put in place today we have supported over a dozen guys who have been quite happy to describe their penis health issues and receive the support they need from other members (thanks guys) and myself. Those who are wedded to the issue of Men's Health will, I am sure, continue here and support guys to the best of their ability, knowledge and experience. I will be among them. Those for whom having pics is more important will vote with their feet and that is fine too. Keep safe and healthy.
Garrett0606 in reply to
Thanks for the clarification.
Thanks Osidge for finally deciding to respond to the legitimate concerns of quite a number of men.
I have to say that I take exception to your inference that I am some sort of inveterate trouble maker by referring to ‘those expected to voice their opinions’ and me specifically as ‘my friend above’.
If you would care to look at any of my posts you will find them to have been informative, empathetic and helpful. So I resent any insinuation that you are making to the contrary.
Before today I have been a valuable member to the forum - I have even written a major article for the site on vasectomy - so your snide comments are not appreciated.
In my opinion, this forum should be a free space for men to voice their concerns without fear. Men are notoriously bad at looking after their health, and I’m sure many have found this very helpful. Many men don’t know the difference between glans and glands, or what their frenulum is, how far their foreskin should be able to retract, and this move will ensure that it will be more difficult to educate them. This forum needs to do more than advising men to seek advice on anything concerning them from their doctor for anything from a severed penis to a Fordyce spot.
In the words of Duncan Bannantyne - I’m out.
in reply to
I agree with you, i feel that Osidge's comments are blunt and may I say naive! Having a small penis plays on your mind constantly and you may not see it as a mental health issue, but you try living with it and see how it affects you. The decisions may come from above , but the abruptness and dismissiveness doesn't come from them. And looking at the comment below, the dismissiveness continues to what looks a valued member of this group who you have now made no effort to hold on to hime but flippantly said good bye and good luck! How many others will you do this to rather than see the value that they bring to the group? People will treat you like you treat them and if you show a little more understanding, you will get it in return
in reply to
You have made no effort to understand the situation. I have never said the penis size may not be related to mental health problems. This forum is, for good or bad, not for mental health problems. It is specifically for penis health problems. We are where we are because people refuse to grasp that. As well as that, during my time as moderator, we have had precious few posts about penis size. I believe I have only moderated one!
As to people leaving, there will be nothing I can do about that. Not only have I had the attacks you have seen but ones you have not. It is not alright for people to attack me or any member! Do you think I am fair game?
Goodbye and good luck going forward. You will be missed. I hope you keep well and safe.
I do want to say I 100% respect moderator decision bc they have to decide what best for the site. I would say I wish they reconsider. Quite frankly the pics have been invaluable and seeing how it suppose look helped me. I thought may be only hand ful my stitches came out and think more like half came out.
Maybe if possible all pics go to moderator first then if u deem it ok allow it to be posted if the technology allows. If not maybe do it thru direct messenger only. So if member has question they can send it thru direct messenger to mod and give them advice.
Since Osidge has been previewing and removing questionable texts and messages, when any posts with inappropriate photos come through the system is there not a way he could filter those before they are posted? Penis photos with swelling, stitches, blisters etc. are not at all sexual, they are medical. It is interesting that the organization behind this site and the other health sites connected to it is totally invisible, as far as I can see.
in reply to Garrett0606
I agree. On many sites posts are reviewed by a moderator before they are made public.
The owner of this site is indeed extremely low profile. How does the site make money? There is no in your face advertising.
in reply to
Hi. This might help in the understanding of the HealthUnlocked platform: support.healthunlocked.com/...
Over the past week, I saw a posting that included a picture. The query was about a ring of slight swelling just behind the head of the penis. The picture, however, was of that entire penis, fully erect, and a small amount of the gut - the picture taken from the left side of the subject. I remember thinking, then, that there was no need, at all, for the entire picture to have been posted - it seemed deliberately posted, and not for support or medical reasons.
The picture sometimes explains more than 100 articles.
Hope there is another solution, this forum is a great idea as it has addressed a lot of problems
And the exchange of experiences between men about penis health without shame, brought interest to many men in this forum.
This change does nothing to stop that exchange of experiences and guys are getting support without pics as the posts show. If the pics are so important to guys that they would stop supporting other guys then that would be a shame.
I'm sorry Osidge but we are being asked to give our opinion and advice with our eyes closed. if you asked a friend there opinion on something and you give a detailed description your friend has there eyes closed they imagine what you describe but it could be totally different in there minds. We will be relying on detailed description only from now on there are almost 10 thousands members from all over the world English may not be there first language sometimes it can be very difficult to understand what they describe I'm sure that the Men's Health Forum realise this. I feel members will be at a disadvantage in not receiving the advice they need particularly if somebody has a serious condition and needs urgent treatment. I do understand the problem with certain postings being underage and inappropriate images it is very difficult to police but I hope that the Men's Health Forum administrators will find a solution.
Thanks for your thoughts.
While you're reading through these posts, now, you'll be able to feel a certain degree of hopelessness, because you can't tell, visually, what is being described. Diagnosis isn't the problem - being able to tell a frightened person that you recognise what is in the picture and have had the same thing...is pretty important.
[ Although, it must be said that a person can sometimes be reassured that something dangerous is harmless and that they can relax about it! You can kill somebody, sometimes, doing that! ]
Once more, the majority must suffer for the actions of the minority. When I come here, now, the place seems dry and uninformative, and morale appears lower than it used to be, although I've not been here for long, myself. People post about things and I've only the vaguest idea of what they're really describing - it was instantaneous understanding when there was a picture. I've no idea what to say to them, now, so I say nothing.
So, in the absence of a photo, I'm supposed to only say, (1) "I'm not a doctor"; (2) "See your GP", or (3) "I couldn't say because I might mislead!", then PenisHealth is now just another casualty of the Net and has been improved to death!
in reply to IanHaines
I do not see it’s death and membership is increasing. I am sorry if not seeing pics makes it a dry place for you. Myself and our frequent posting helpers (You know who you are!) are still providing support that posters appear to like.
IanHaines in reply to
So, why was picture posting ever a required option?
in reply to IanHaines
It was an option to be used if necessary. Sadly it seemed that some thought it was obligatory!
IanHaines in reply to
Maybe so. It's easy to gather other members, because they don't know what this thread knows - also, they've known no benefit of posting pictures, here, so they're hardly likely to miss it. Some of them, because of word-of-mouth, came because they needed to show their condition in a photograph, and they will be disappointed to be unable to.
When I first came here, I was pleasantly surprised that a feature like that even existed on a health forum of any kind. I saw it as a mark of progress and a really useful tool.
1. Some members need to show photographs of some conditions/marks.
2. They can't use photographs.
3. Refer to 1 and 2.
The decision's been made. I get paid to Moderate gigantic corporate forums (customer support, etc.) and I would have hated having to stop the uploading of photographs, regardless of the reason. You did what you were instructed to do, in the end.
At least, give them the opportunity to upload them elsewhere and folk can then click the links, posted here, and see the photographs. One disclaimer later, the guys see the conditions while not even being on this site. It's the safest way, but many, many guys will not know how to do any of that uploading/linking.
in reply to IanHaines
It might help in looking at this forum to look at a selection of other forums on HealthUnlocked. Not *all* members need to show photographs and that was the problem. I was spending a lot of tine, for which I do not get paid, deleting them and, on occasion, getting abused as a reward. Those abusers of the system are the reason for this decision. I still remember the posting of an unnecessary large erect penis attracting the comment “very suckable”. Health support? I don’t think so.
IanHaines in reply to
So, would it be fair to say that "...abusers of the system are the reason..." we can no longer use photographs, because you were "...spending a lot of time, for which (you) do not get paid, deleting them and, on occasion, getting abused as a reward"?
Well, just take on 2 more Moderators and make it their (dedicated) job to stop the abuse of the photo posting feature and to get rid of all trouble makers who abuse Administrators and Moderators. If you're there to help us, we should make damned certain that we're there to help you.
You have a little under 10,000 members - there should be a Moderator for every 1,500 to 2,000 members on a busy forum, and that refers to ACTIVE Moderators, rather than short-stay visitors.
Find 2 you can trust and just promote them - ask your Admin' about it. This shouldn't come down to only you, considering the pressure you've been under. That will take the pressure off you and give back the photo feature that a lot of members hoped they could use, where necessary. Extra staff, reduced pressure on you, no need to continue banning photographs on the site.
in reply to IanHaines
New staff are a continuous consideration.
I highly suggest u leave it On the privet level so users can shear the images if required when case is similar
Maybe we need to get back on track and be there to support each other. Let's leave the childish comments out. I may not agree with the moderator all the time, but it's a case of I tow the line or leave. I'm disappointed that the minority spoil it for us all but again, if we are not happy then we can leave.
in reply to
Thanks for that positive outlook. This place is too important to keep the disappointment going for ever. I really hope that we do not fall out too often😀
jimpollardPartner
Hello everyone. Sorry there has been silence for so long. We’ve been really busy on Covid-19. As many of you will know, at any given age men are twice as likely to die as women and men need to communicate this to each other.
First up, I’d like to thank Osidge for all his work on the Forum. He’s doing a great job in difficult circumstances. As he has said, we would like more moderators but that is easier said than done.
As far as pictures are concerned, we need to understand what the Forum is for. If I want my doctor to diagnose something, I’ll send him or her a picture of it but that’s not what we’re doing here. We’re not qualified to diagnose. We're sharing experiences and being supportive of what each other going through. You don’t need to see a picture of someone else to do this. In fact, non-professionals making a ‘diagnosis’ from a photo carries risks.
Hope that makes sense. The written word has been around a while and remains a great source of communication. Let’s use it. Hope you all continue to find the Forum helpful.
Sorry to be late to the discussion - I have been away. I have read all the moderators posts, and also the replies. I know some posters have linked to images outside of the HealthUnlocked forums to bypass this decision, but I cannot access these through my work computer. As a result , peoples descriptions make it very difficult to give any suggestions about their issues.
I also take note of the health professionals advice in the pinned posts section. I guess there are other sites on the Net that do give open advice to individuals about different medical issues. I know there is a fine line sometimes between "advice" "support " and giving an opinion on a problem.
Of course there can be issues regarding safeguarding and people under 16 posting on forums - pictures or no pictures. This is what the moderators and HealthUnlocked admin are here to moderate for. There are however ( as far as I know ) no age verification processes , posters can simply tell an untruth about their age.
Unfortunately for me as a contributor, the lack of pictures would make it nigh impossible to give correct signposting to other services . The circumcision forum is a busy one which I don't have the time , or experience , to reply to. Now that penile health is on there also , without pictures , I feel I will have to unsubscribe as I don't have the time to trawl through circumcision posts . I will still retain my membership of other sexual health forums on Health Unlocked.
I am sad to do this.
Penis health has always included circumcision. Sorry to see you go. Take care.
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