During the initial construction of the phalloplasty, a urethra can be built inside of the penis to allow for a patient to eventually urinate while standing up. However, to let the phalloplasty heal, the natal urethra and the urethra in the penis are not connected until 6-9 months after the initial procedure. This means a patient will not be able to urinate out of the tip of their penis until 6-9 months later. Catheters will be used during the recovery process of each of these procedures.