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2nd Trimester
S/O Circumcision
I know there was talk of circumcision earlier, which I missed. But, I wanted to post this video from Wikipedia showing an infant circumcision. If you have never watched the procedure done, you absolutely should, and think about how you would feel if that was your new born baby boy screaming under the drape:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=013PdUzvWpo
I know in my heart that is cruel and medically unjustified. Even though my husband's family is Jewish, we will not be circumcising our son.
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Re: S/O Circumcision
I'm going to go ahead and give you an enormous eyeroll on this.....
I was PRESENT at my nephews circumcision just last week. Did he scream? Yes. He also screamed when they gave him a bath, shots, and when he was hungry. He will never remember it.
Good for you if you don't want to do it. But it's not YOUR decision if anyone else wants to circumsize THEIR son. So take your cruel and medically unjustified OPINION and use it with your son.
No matter what you choose, I would highly suggest NOT watching this video.
Wow.
And no, we have not and will not circumsize.
Wow - as a mother who had been present for both of her sons circumcisions, I can assure you we would have had the procedure done if this baby had turned out to be a boy.
Neither of my children cried during the procedure, they sucked happily away on the dropper of sugar water and then went back to sleep when all was said and done. They cried harder when I put them in the carseat to take them home, but I am so "cruel I went ahead and strepped them in.
Is the point of this to make thouse of us that are circumsizing to change our minds? Because it's not going to work...it will actually just piss a lot of people off.
Um.
My son screams when he's getting his shots... but...
He also screams when he's overly tired, when he has to take a bath (HE HATES WATER!), and even when he's just so damn happy and hyper that he just feels the need to scream his lungs out. Then start laughing at me.
Babies scream. It doesn't mean they're in pain. They gave my son anaesthesia so he wouldn't be in pain, and as soon as they brought him back to me after he was circ'ed, he was fine again. Because he was back with mommy! He hates being without me.
If #2 is a boy, we're doing it again. I guess I'm a crap mom. I should also stop taking him for his shots, giving him baths, and letting him get excited to the point of squealing/screaming, right?
I think a lot of people make a choice about whether to circumcise without even researching what the procedure actually entails. I think it is important to know what they are doing to your child. I could hardly stomach to watch it myself, and that isn't even my baby. You can choose to circumcise or not, it's your son's genitals, but I can't imagine doing that to my son.
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I disagree that the dad should decide. That makes no sense. This is a decision for both parents, just like any other involving the child.
That said--we will be circumcising, partly for cultural reasons (we're Jewish) and partly for health reasons (recent studies have clearly shown that circumcision prevents the transmission of HIV and other STDs).
I do believe it should be done with appropriate pain control. It seems silly to post this video when (I presume) you have no idea what kind of pain control is being used and it may not be representative of a circumcision that an individual on this board is planning.
Oh please. I'm going to second the eyeroll.
For the record, my DH & I watched our son get circumsized in the hospital--and he didn't cry.
I think our son will thank us in the long run for making this decision.
ditto this, and I raise you an eyeroll.
I third the eyeroll - If my baby is a boy, I will be circumcising him, and now, I may just make a "***-slicer" badge so I can wear it proud.
I've seen many a circumcision done, but that aside, I've also known two men who had to be circumcised as pre-teens due to infections, and trust me, that child will be screaming a whole hell of a lot worse, and will remember everything about having to have it done.
OMG. ?::dies:: ?We shall have to get Jennabee on that one.?
Ha - maybe it should say SNIP THE TIP, since the bump apparently doesn't like d*ck slicer.
I think that I officially find this whole topic to be so boring...
At the end of the day I know guys who wished that they had been circumcised as infants and got it done as adults... but I've never met a guy who wished he had his foreskin back.
"Long before the American Academy of Pediatrics issued its first policy statement on circumcision, the practice was well established in the Judeo-Christian tradition. Thousands of years later, in 1971, the Academy acknowledged the historical tradition, but found "no absolute medical indication for routine circumcision." This position was maintained until 1989, when the Academy's evaluation of then-recent data led to the belief that "medical benefits, as well as risk" were associated with newborn circumcisions. In 1999, as a result of new research, the Academy modified its position and while acknowledging potential medical benefits, clearly stated that these benefits were not sufficient to cause the Academy to recommend routine circumcision.
The Academy's 1999 policy against routine circumcision is based on an attempt to establish a balance between the "benefits" of circumcision with the "risks" of remaining uncircumcised. Specifically, the Academy noted that while circumcised boys younger than 1 year of age were less likely to get a urinary tract infection (UTI) compared to uncircumcised boys, the overall rate of UTI's in boys is so low that the "benefit" is negligible.
The Academy also noted that while circumcised men are less likely to get cancer of the penis anytime during their lifetimes compared to uncircumcised men, the overall rate of penile cancer is so low that the "benefit" is negligible.
To this balance, the Academy also added the risks of the actual circumcision procedure. Such risks include infection, excessive bleeding, pain, and cosmetic concerns. Infection, as a result of the procedure, is very uncommon. So too, are incidences of excessive bleeding. A thorough family history regarding bleeding disorders can significantly decrease this risk. The issue of pain is very real, as research indicates that newborns are capable of feeling pain. Infants who experience pain have elevated blood pressure, heart rate, and stress hormone levels. Therefore, every attempt must be made to minimize the pain associated with the procedure. The most effective form of pain relief is the injection of numbing medicine in a ring around the base of the penis.
Finally, cosmetic concerns may exist following a circumcision. In the majority of cases, these concerns diminish over time as the natural growth and development of the penis takes place.
In the end, the Academy could offer no significant medical benefits to advocate routine circumcision. Their policy is against routine circumcision.
Why, then, do the majority of American newborn boys get circumcised? The answer is because of social reasons. Most parents who choose to have their son circumcised do so because they "want him to look like his dad" or brother."
IMO social reasons are not good enough reasons to perform genital mutilation on a child. I think it's pretty damn selfish to mutilate part of your son so he "looks like dad" or "won't get made fun of in the locker room". And plain and simple, it's genital mutilation, no matter how you try to word it.
I have heard many reasons, including it's harder to clean or gets infected. An uncircumcised penis is VERY easy to clean. Care of the uncircumcised penis involves cleansing the outside with warm water and a gentle soap. No attempt to force the foreskin back should be made, as the ability to retract the foreskin will occur gradually over the course of 3 to 5 years. Boys should be taught to retract the foreskin and clean this area during regular bathing. It does not take any longer than normal. The foreskin also has antibacterial qualities that keep the penis free from bacterias, and not the other way around that many people seem to think to be the case.
Of course this is your decision, and I honestly don't think that any of you will even care what this says, or even study circumcision in depth more that you have, or have not, already. I'm sure you will have rebuttals to everything that is written here, even though the Amercian Academy of Pediactrics is against circumcision as a routine practice.
Our son is definitly having the circumcision.
Should I even watch the video?
EXACTLY. Does anyone know just ONE man who wished he had NOT been circumsized????
The AAP is actually reviewing its stance on circumcision.
That article was published two years ago. The current AAP website says:
Scientific studies show some medical benefits of circumcision. However, these benefits are not sufficient for the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) to recommend that all infant boys be circumcised.Okay, how about something published yesterday? The policy you cite is 10 years old. The AAP's review of that policy has been ongoing.
Newsweek, April 4, 2009:
"A new AAP task force has been reexamining the 1999 report for more than a year. According to two members of the panel, though, while the oft-delayed review is likely to feature a stronger endorsement of circumcision?chiefly owing to recent studies showing benefits in reducing the spread of HIV?it will again stop short of a mandate."
Circumcision is like EVERYTHING else in pregnancy - a personal decision - from breastfeeding to induction, there are pros/cons, but all in all, we want to prevent diseases and I will admit, girlfriends and other boys in the locker room picking on our kid. I don't care if this doesn't seem relevant...if I have a boy, he will be circumsized. It is easier to keep clean and hopefully he'll be able to avoid infections, etc.
But the real point is that using a screaming baby as "proof" we should change our minds is not good enough. You should show us EVIDENCE but don't assume you have any idea what other women are researching. EVERY decision we make is personal, as it is our child, but a baby screams over a lot of crap...and I'd rather them deal with it as an infant than when they are old enough to remember! NOW THAT WOULD BE TRAMATIC!
Hm, you prevent HIV and AIDS by abstaining from sex or having protected sex. If you have unprotected sex with someone who has HIV you have a good chance of getting the disease, circumcised or not.