Circumsize or Not

I say do it! It seems that research shows it is the best way to go. And, he may not be happy with you later if you don't do it!

I had my son circumsized. I think growing up in America it is just customary to have it done. As an older child in high school, he may feel embarrased and be criticized if he's not by boys in the locker room. And that kind of info spreads quickly in school. That, and just a personal preferance is what I based my decision on.

It's true that it isn't totally necessary, but the risk of infection is cut down a lot and it's easier to keep clean.

Well I see you have decided to take the advice of the naive drama queen but I have only two FACTS to give. First, is that in Africa (where AIDS is a pandemic), doctors are trying to circumcise all the men to reduce the risk of contracting the virus. (That tells you something there!!!!) Second, I am not sure what religion you are, but if you agree with the bible you should read what it says about circumcision - if you are going to follow anybody's advice - why not The Almighty?
And a GOOD doctor with experience will not mess it up - do your research - your husband is right - hopefully he will be able to show you the light.

I am very glad my second child was a girl because we had a bad experience with circumcision with my son and wouldn't want to have to make that decision again. We had him circumcised when he was 1 week old (because his daddy is). After being at home for several hours, there seemed to be more blood than there should. I took him back to the doctor. She couldn't stop the bleeding, so she told us to take him to the ER at Cooks right away. That was one of the worst experiences I have ever had-sitting in traffic trying to get to Cooks with my bleeding son in the car. We had to wait for hours before we saw a doctor there, and it eventually stopped bleeding on its own. I'm not trying to scare you-I'm sure that's rare, but if I had it to do over I wouldn't go through that again. I'm not sure about the medical reasons, but I do know that lots of parents are choosing not to circumcise these days, so it's not accurate to compare how embarrassing it is now to how it will be years from now when our children are grown. Good luck-whatever you decide will be right for your family, so don't let anyone tell you otherwise!

There are several points of view, but whats 1 more.

When we had our son he researched and it was a hard decision.
We talked it over with the Dr's, the hospital staff, and several others. They said there was a time they thought it was best but now only about 50% get it done now. That people don't get it done for religious reasons anymore. His Pedi Doctor
said sometimes if the Dad is then they will circumcise
the boy. But if Dad isn't then, they don't. She said,
that if they see there dad looks different that they sometimes thing there's something wrong with them.

My husband was not circumsed, it was not law in his state he was born. He has NEVER had any problems or infections and he is in his mid 30's now. So we choose not to do it. We had also heard, some bad experiences. Our son was borm Premature and in NICU so we didn't want to add to his problems.

As women we go through several Infections in our life,
Yeast, Urinary tract infection. So the best we can do is teach our child to keep themselves clean.

Our son is 3 1/2 now and never any infections or problems.

Good luck on your choice.

Hi C., We moved to the USA when I was 7 months pregnant of my second son. I remember the docter me asking "do you want him to get cicumsiced?". I answered: "no, we are no Jews" and thought it an odd question. Later I found out most boys in the USA are cicumsiced, I really didn't know that.

Anyhow, in Europe it is not a custom, and if I were you I would do a lot of research before putting your son through this.

Good luck with your decision.

I.

I think this a personal decision as well. I am pregnant with my second child (the first is a girl) and he is a boy. After much careful consideration and research we have chosen not to circ. Everyone will tell you there opinions and alot of times provide you with misinformation. Read the research yourself and talk to your pediatrician if you any other questions. We were totally open to both sides and after reading a ton feel there is no medical reason to have it done. All the comments about increased infection and being unclean have been medically proven incorrect. The only increased risk your uncirced son will have is a slightly increased risk of Urinary Tract Infections, which are really rare anyways. Good luck making your decision! I encourage you to make an informed decision!

HI C.!

I have twin 2 month old boys and they both had circumsicions, but at different times. The first one was a few days old when he had his done. My OB did it at the hospital and said he didn't even cry. The second one had his done at 2 weeks the day he left the NICU by my OB as well. He said he didn't cry either.

This is a matter of choice. Some say let him decide, they don't feel right doing it to his body. But right now he can't make choices and you do that for him as a parent. You do several things that effect who he is going to be and how his body will turn out when he is older.

I agree with doing research. Find a place that is neither for it or against it, because that will make your mind up for you. My choice came from what I read. The infections they are prone to get with out getting it done as well as the embarassment. As a parent I felt it was the right thing to do, to not put my child at risk for those things. What ever choice you make will be the right choice since you are his mother. and Mother knows best!

Good luck!

I had a doula at hospital for the birth of our son. She was Jewish and recommended not to have our son circumcized. She gave me tons of medical website addresses to look at and I did. We did not have him circumcized. I thought about it during his diaper years... had I done the right thing? I've actually forgotten that we had not gotten it done. He is 7 and hasn't had an infection.

I would say go with whatever his Daddy did. That way they are the same. Boys want to be so much like their Daddy, and if the father isn't circumsized, then he can teach his son how to take care of himself properly. If the father is circumsized, you don't want your son to feel different from him.

We had our son circumcised without any hesitation. We have friends who didn't, and they did everything they could to keep everything clean, but they constantly were fighting very painful infections. He was in pain and a lot of discomfort for the first couple of years of his life until they finally had it done. They were almost in a depression for what their son went through only because they decided not to do it at first. He went through a lot, but they said they would most certainly cimcumcise again because of the trauma with the first one and not doing it.

I know it's more difficult now, but I think it is best (in my opinion only of course). They say there is no medical reason, but after seeing what happened to our friends, we didn't think twice about it. It's really a decision between you and your husband since there's no medical need.

C.,

I have 2 boys, the oldest will be 13 in a few weeks and my baby is 6. Neither one of them were circumcised and they are just fine. They've NEVER had an infection, they've never had any problems, complaints etc. I know that more and more people aren't doing this, so I personally didn't worry about what others out there think about it. My DR said it perfectly when I was deciding with my oldest. Appendicitis is really common, so maybe we should start taking everyones appendix out before they have a chance to get an infection, and ear infections are common, so maybe we should start placing tubes in all babies ears when they come out.. Yes he MAY get an infection, but I say cross that path when they get there. People have to get tonsils removed all of the time because of infections. so maybe that can be the next thing on the list.. You just do your research, ask a lot of questions and do what you feel in your heart you need to do! Good luck..

I strongly object and resent the comparison of circumcision of men and women. Female circumcision is NOT the same, they are two differenct parts of the human genitalia (THE CLITORIS TO BE EXACT). For men, it just means removing extra skin which in my opinion and from personal experience is much better. And I also thought quite an odd statement for a mother to say that she doesnt own her childs body so she will let him decide......so if thats the case, then why no let the child decide whether or not he should get immunizations??? Circumcision, is the mothers choice if you do it when the child is still a baby, it releives a lot of pain when the child gets older. Personally, I would circumcise my son if I had one. It DOES reduce health issues as well as ODOR. Im sorry but not all men actually wipe after they urinate and there is notihing more gross then the smell of pee that has been islowly fermented by a mans FORESKIN! Its not a medically necessary but could prevent a lot of medical issues in the future. Just think if you have to pull back your sons foreskiin when you change his diaper to make sure he is clean - he will have to do the same thing when he gets older which (from personal expereince again) can get to be a task that some men dont bother to do..........yuck.

Yes definitley get it done! My son had his done at birth. Not only because of increased risk of infections,but when he gets older it could be very embarrassing, and if he decides do get it done when hes older it will be painful. At 2 months he will not remember or know he had the surgery.

I had my son circumsized and it was a horrible experience. I did not want him circumsized but my husband insisted for cosmetic reasons. The doctor did not cut enough and had to go back. Then he got penile adhesions that needed to be broken which was very painful for him. My advice to you is...don't do it. He's already 2 mo. old. There are medical reasons for it but with proper care there should not be any problems. Good luck with your decision. I know it's a hard one.

I personally would say DEFINITELY YES, Both my boys are circumsized. One, It looks better. two, It decreases the chance of infection and STD's and like other mothers have stated it is worse on a man the older you get and plus it's harder to keep clean when you are not circumsized.

I am sure the reason that the man didn't have the same feeling like the other mother stated when he was circumsized in 20's was cause he waited so long to do it.
I would ask a doctor if in doubt. Do more research on it.
I don't think it's worth the risk but that's just me.

Good luck on whatever you decide on.
M.

C., You have had so many responses from both sides. Very interesting. I am from England and like Inge I was very shocked when I came to the States and found out most boys were circumcised and why. Infection is not a problem in Europe at all. I spoke to another English friend of mine about this and her feeling was that if her son was going to be the only boy in the locker rooms in High school or college who wasn't it may be an embarrassment for him. I think this disscussion has shown that he's not likely to be alone.

We didn't circumcise our 2 year old and won't do the next boy (due 8/07). We had insurance to cover it, but my husband was opposed. At first I resisted, but the more I learned about it, the less I wanted to do it. As I said, my son is now 2 and we've never had any issues with it. As far as care goes, we don't do anything special to do. Our pedi says around 4 or 5 we need to show him how to pull back the skin and clean it.
I am so glad I listened to my husband on this one. This is how I look at it: the circ can be done later, but it can never be undone. I know many new mothers & fathers that are choosing not to do it, so I don't think the social aspect will be there as it was when we were growing up.

It is inaccurate to say a circumcision is purely cosmetic. There are medical reasons for it. My mother-in-law is a surgery nurse, and she's taken care of many older boys and adult men who have had to get circumcisions due to infections and other issues. She says it's quite painful for older men, and it requires that they take a few weeks off work. They all wish their parents had done it sooner.

Do all people have issues and require circ's later in life? No. But, it is also not all that uncommon.

The choice is up to you, but please don't think it's purely cosmetic, no matter what the other link tells you. If we have a boy, he will be circ'd.

I with the women who have said to do it if his daddy is. My oldest son is 3 1/2 and is already asking these type of personal questions. If he didn't look like his daddy, I think he would feel like something was wrong with him. If my husband weren't, then I wouldn't have had it done on either of my boys. Good luck in whatever you decide.