circumcision (did i spell that right? lol)

Jenna - posted on 08/30/2010

I suggest to get it done. I had my son's done the day after he was born and it's really not that bad. They recover fast! A circumsized baby's penis is much easier to keep clean and what about when your son gets old enough to play sports? In high school there was a boy that was uncircumsized and he always got teased a ridiculed for it. He ended up having the surgery while we were in high school and it was much harder to recover from than if he would have been a baby.

Leigh-ann - posted on 08/28/2010

Just in case when my 22 yr old walked in after my post I asked the question again.His reply was yes why? i explaind my reasons for asking and the ongoing debate.He told me they used to pick on a althete in high school because of the appearence of the undone penis.Also in the military it was "pleseant"teasing'" among commaredes if a guy had a "sausage".This is so not about a motheres feelings against mutilation and so about a mans manhood.Iam glad i made the correct descion for my sons.Granted some men wont care but the vast majority do care and as you brought up yourself(i appreciate your neuturality) There may be a medicial situation in the future speaks volumes in it of itself.

Mary - posted on 08/28/2010

The bottom line is, most circumcised men don't regret the fact that they were circumcised as infants. And most uncircumcised men don't regret the fact that they weren't circumcised as infants (unless they run into medical problems in the future and have to have it done as adults.)
Whatever decision you make as a mother is not going to traumatize them because #1) they won't remember infancy and 2.) whatever they grow up with will be considered NORMAL for them. They'll be used to it. It will be a part of who they are as men, and most likely they won't regret it either way.

Leigh-ann - posted on 08/27/2010

Im sorry I have 2 grown sons and a 14 year old all are very glad I made this decsion when they were dependant on me to.Ive asked all 3 if i didnt have it done would consider paying for it now? all say yes,and are glad they know nothing of the "tramua" and "pain" of this occurance and dont feel mutilated.Just the oppsite.You are a newer mother of boys that are not yet educated on this poor decsion on your part.they will surely suffer in some way in the future for your power assertion over their lives and manhood.

Mary - posted on 08/27/2010

sometimes there is a medical benefit.
my son was born with urinary reflux, which causes UTI's, which causes Kidney damage.
he is on a preventative daily antibiotic to keep him from getting any future UTI's but the antibiotic does not kill any bacteria on the skin. bc IT IS SO IMPERATIVE that he doent get another UTI, circumcision is a routine treatment to prevent bacteria from colonizing under the foreskin.

Janice - posted on 08/27/2010

My 8 year old is circumcised and I regret it greatly to this day. I'm sorry I ever agreed to have it done. We spent 3 days in the hopstial after he was born(c-sect) and he was wonderful, quiet, content baby. The day we left they did the circumcision and he changed. He screamed non-stop for I don't know how long.. I know it hurt him.
My 8 month old is not circumcised and I'm so glad we chose not to do it. There is no reason, at all, that we need to mutilate our babies. It's their body, not ours. We really have no right to do something so invasive and tragic to them.

I totally believe what Dr. Sears says about the issue.. http://www.askdrsears.com/html/1/t012000...

"Medical benefits - THERE ARE NONE! Do not circumcise your baby because you think there are some medical benefits. A recent review by the American Academy of Pediatrics looked at all the data from the past decades to see if there truly were any medical benefits. Their conclusion - NO. There are no significant medical benefits that make circumcision worth doing. Here are a few benefits that we used to think were true, and now know are not.
Cleanliness - although it is true, a circumcised penis does not collect any white stuff underneath the foreskin like an intact penis does, THIS IS NOT A MEDICAL BENEFIT. It is really just one less area to wash in the shower.
Decreased risk of STD's - this was a myth that we now know is not true.
Decreased risk of penile cancer - it used to be thought that circumcised men had a much lower chance of cancer of the penis. We now know that this benefit is much smaller than previously thought. The AAP determined that this benefit is so tiny, it is not worth circumcising for this reason.
Avoiding infections in the foreskin - it is true, occasionally intact foreskins get irritated. This is easily treated with warms soaks and washing. Rarely, the irritated foreskin becomes infected. This requires antibiotics to clear up, but is easily treatable. Even if this does happen once or twice in a person's life, it is not a reason to circumcise at birth.
Avoiding the need to do it later on - very rarely, someone has a problem with recurrent infections in the foreskin that need antibiotic treatment. Some of these men then need to be circumcised in an operating room under general anesthesia. This is extremely rare, however, and is not a reason to circumcise everyone at birth.
Avoiding bladder infections - it used to thought that circumcised boys and men had a much lower chance of bladder infections. The AAP now knows that this benefit is very small, and is only true for the first few years of life. After that, there is no difference in the number of bladder infections. Again, not a reason to circumcise.
THEREFORE, IF YOU DECIDE TO CIRCUMCISE YOUR CHILD, DO NOT DO SO BECAUSE YOU THINK THERE IS ANY MEDICAL BENEFIT."

Mary - posted on 08/27/2010

Katie, I totally agree. my best friend is a nurse, and she said that EVERY SINGLE MAN she's ever treated with a UTI was uncircumcised.

Katie - posted on 08/27/2010

Sorry but I can't let u say all that. That may be your choice. I do not have boys but I know without even a doubt that they would be circumcised. Maybe you don't do anything different as a baby, but trust me, after working in elderly care, things are different. They do suffer cleanliness issues, recurrence in utis and staph/mrsa infection. They do have complications. The reason? There r too many nurses and cnas that think like u do. "Only clean whats seen" then the germs and infection and poop and everything just sits there. I have seen a penis swell up soo giant because he wasnt cleaned properly and infection set in.

Amber - posted on 08/26/2010

I'm sorry, but I can't sit back and read these replies, most of which are inaccurate and ignorant. My 15 mo. old was left intact, just as he was created and just and he should be. I know most of america has been so mislead to believe what most people responded here by saying "It's not clean, they will get more uti's, future std's...they won't be like their dad, they will be made fun of, they don't feel the pain (that is the WORST one of all), they will be made fun of"........an uncircumcised baby's foreskin doesn't even retract sometime until the ages of 9 or 10 years old. You wouldn't ever dream of cutting off your baby's ear so you never have to clean it, right? then why do people make such a big deal of circumcision. It is mutilation!!!!!!!! You do not do one thing different to clean the penis of a baby left intact. You clean it like you would a finger. "Only clean what is seen".....PLEASE, for future advice on this issue go to drmomma.org (peaceful parenting website) CIRCUMCISION IS A CRYING SHAME!!!!

Andrea - posted on 02/24/2010

where i live the hospital does not do them in the hospital. my son was circumcized at a doctors office. i was really upset and worried about it, but Jackson was fantastic. they freeze his penis with a cream and then a needle. he didn't cry at all and it did not seem to faze him after. he did not cry after each change like some other moms babies did. i would suggest getting it done- i know a few people who had to get it done later in life- 10 years of age and in his 60's. it was painful for them and they remembered it. your son will not if you get it done now.

Leigh-ann - posted on 02/23/2010

Yes yes yes for many reasons.as soon as possible.I had all 3 of my boys done before leaving the hospital.The strongest reason is for social reasons.If it is not done you are setting him up for future turmoil.As a woman I know myself and all of the women friends all agree that they pefer a man to be circumsised.The only con i know is the small very short term discomfort.newborn babies nervous systems arent devoloped as much and it doesnt hurt that much.It heals in 5-7 days and doesnt bother them during healing.I know a couple years ago american doctors deemed itmot nessecary.I also know like 5-10 years ago the world health organization did a several year study and concluded the single most effective way to combat hiv in afircia was to have all male children born circumsicsed.because they dont have acess to information or educated about the spread of hiv or acsessto condoms this simple procedure allows less virus and bacteria to accumulate on the penis therefore reducing the spreading of as many germs.without circumcison even in the well hygene educated men,urine and other fluids build up under the foreskin in one day making more odor etc...Please for the sake of his future have it done.you would be doing a diservice if you dont.he could meet the woman of his dreams and .once she discovers his noncircumsion not move foward with him.So the cons some short term disconfort,Pros,it is the the culture for american males to be snipped.A more attractive penis,a much more sanitary penis.Sparing him the social anxiety in the future.Sparring him possible lack of confidence in his man hood.Sparing him possible ridicule from his peers,male and female alike.please your son will be so greatfull that you had it done 4 him I promise!!

Kerry - posted on 02/19/2010

We had our little boy done in the hospital - it was healed within a week! He now looks like his daddy & is easy to clean. We did have some negative comments from nurses etc. about our decision - but in the end it is your baby - do what feels right to you!

Kristen - posted on 02/18/2010

We had our little guy circumcised when he was six weeks old (there were some complications following birth so he couldn't be done right away) and there was no issue at all. It was mostly done because it's cleaner and it looks nicer and daddy is circumcised. He healed in a week and we have not had a single problem with it. We also thought about the long term. Usually you don't hear about men having problems until they are 40+ and they always report it as painful and traumatic and painful. We wanted to spare him that potential in his future.

Rachelle - posted on 02/18/2010

i didn't know people still had this done i know in my high school guys were made fun of if they were and it was used as an insult to be circumsized if i had a little boy i wouldn't even consider having it done and the hospitals around here will not do it you have tto travel a distance to have it done

Kassandra - posted on 02/17/2010

my thoughts are what daddy is the boy should be. My boy has been done. it wasn't that bad at all they freezed it and cut it u put polysporn or vasiline on the diaper so the penis doesn't get to irritated and sensitive. have a ccircomcision you dont have to worry about inection and teaching him how to properly clean it when he gets older.

Brenda - posted on 02/17/2010

i havent got my son circummsised to many mights and maybes when i looked up the pros and cons if u do get it done make sure they use some kind of numming stuff , babys can feel pain from birth.

Mary - posted on 02/17/2010

mine was 4 weeks early and so small they wouldn't do it. i should've demanded it bc now he has to get it done at 5 months!



edit: he's actually going to get it done at 7 months. and what a disaster!

about a month ago i had to take him to the hospital bc he had a mild fever (100.8F)

they did a urine culture and it came back positive for bacteria. He was diagnosed with a urinary tract infection.

apparently 1% of uncircumcised infants get UTI's. so we set up a consult with a pediatric urologist.

they set up some tests. the 1st one was a kidney ultrasound to check for kidney damage. he'll have to have a more accurate one (with dye) done again in a few months.

then they did something called a VCUG which is where they put a catheter in and pump his bladder full of fluid and dye until he pees it out. when he pees it out they watch to see if the "pee" ends up going back up thought the tubes and into his kidneys (called reflux.)

Reflux is graded on a scale from 1 to 5, 5 being the worst. Caden has Grade 2 reflux. and they're not sure if the UTI's are causing the reflux or if the reflux is causing the UTI's.

there are a few things that can cause reflux.

1: infants are very small, which means that the valves in his tubes are small. he has to grow a little in order for the valves to grow and keep the pee from backing up.

2: it might be hereditary. a few GIRLS on my dad's side have UTI'S and reflux, so maybe... but he's a boy. i dont know if that matters....

3: he also has phimosis, which is a tight foreskin. it could be trapping bacteria, causing the UTI, which causes reflux.

they're going to circumcise him in July, which is what i wanted in the first place ::sigh::

but in the meantime, until he grows out of the reflux, he has to take an antibiotic everyday in order to prevent more UTI's.



UPDATE:

Caden had his circ done! it will be 7 weeks post-op on Monday, Aug 30.

Right after surgery (which took 45 minutes) i went to go see him and he was a little cranky and crying, but i think it's bc he was STARVING. I nursed him and when he was done, he was good as new, as if nothing had even happened. sitting up and smiling, laughing, etc.

That night he had some blood in his diaper and bleeding is subjective (meaning what i may think is a little, the doctor may think is a lot), so we took him into the ER. We were there for about 4 hours. They took some blood to make sure he didnt have a clotting problem (he doesnt) and put some mild pressure on his penis (he didnt even cry.)

I gave him a bottle while were there and he slept on his dada's chest. then we went home.

The next day he was fine. no blood. It was just swollen. and it stayed swollen for about 2 weeks.

When we went to the follow up 16 days later, the doc said everything looked perfect.

7 weeks later, he's still peeling a little right around where the incision was but that's normal.

Once all the peeling is gone, it will be like he had it done at birth.

Jennifer - posted on 02/16/2010

I had both of my sons circumcised. I had my first day a couple of days after we left the hospital. it healed in about 5 days. After I had my second son we couldn't get into the pediatrician until he was like 5 weeks old. At the time no one told me the cons of waiting so long. After we had it done within hours he was bleeding horribley so I took him back in. What happens is at birth they give them a vitamin K shot to help the blood clot. waiting as long as i did the Vitamine K shot wears off. Once he had that shot the bleeding stopped and he was f ine. My husband and I chose to do it now because it is now a requirement to join the Army, Marines, etc and I would rather do it now than have to have them do it when they are 17,18, 19 years old when they will remember and feel every bit of the pain.

Stephanie - posted on 02/03/2010

We had our son's done at the hospital the day after he was born. They said he slept through the procedure and when he woke up he was just hungry not really too cranky. The diaper changes seemed painless for him we just had to use a very generous amount of vaseline which keeps the penis from sticking to the diaper where the wound is healing. He was all healed in about a week.

Melissa - posted on 01/29/2010

I had my sons done at the hospital. It was worth it. At first I was surprised by the way his penis looked after having it done, but it healed really fast. For me there was not thought about it. I wanted him to have it done. It is easier to keep their penis clean and you don't have to worry about infection getting up the skin of and uncircumsised penis. I have a friend that didn't get their sons done at birth and due to medical reasons and so on had to have it done when he was 3, the surgery was a lot more involved and it took him longer to heal. I didn't want to take those chances.

Lina - posted on 01/29/2010

I think circumcision is the best idea for a boy. My first boy wasn't circumcised - because doctor forgot and we just left it alone... Now he's 6 y.o. and I see big difference - I wished we have done it. It is difficult for a little boy to take care of it - I constantly have to remind him to pull the skin and wash it with soap. However my newborn is circumcised and I am glad he is - I don't have to bother with him when he gets older! In my opinion - do it! Its for the best!

Adrian - posted on 01/29/2010

I've had my son done the first week of January. It was an emotional experience for me to see him upset and imagining that he could feel the pain but the only thing that was really making him cry was having his arms and legs restrained. The nurse was able to calm him easily with some drops of sugar water and stroking his cheek. But I don't think they can feel much pain at the early ages, I think their pain sensitivity is still developing so I think the sooner you get it done the better for that reason. He didn't seem to have any issues with the recovery either- lots of vasaline and gauze.

I really think its something you should have done too because its cleaner, you don't have to worry about cleansing the area of smegma (done by pulling back the foreskin, its like a penis cheese). Most boys have it done so as he grows up and is showering in the lockerroom with the other boys he might feel strange, awkward or even ashamed because he isn't circumsized. And my final reason to have it done, have it done now while he won't remember it any differently and won't remember the pain (if there is any for little babies).

A good thing to look into also, most insurance policies don't cover it because its regarded as cosmetic. There are pediatricians that will offer to do it for a flat fee or around $200 CASH to pay for the medical supplies, otherwise its around the upwards of $300.

Hope all this information helps.

Elizabeth - posted on 01/29/2010

no way would i do that! it's like genital mutalation. i say god made you the way you're supposed to be.

Courtney - posted on 01/28/2010

it was a bit of a debate in our house before alexander was born...we knew we were having a boy so we dicussed it every now and again. the boys on my side of the family all are circumcised but brent and his brothers arent. in the end we chose not to but there was no particular reason why. brent brought up some pros according to him (male pros) but it really makes no difference if you keep him clean either way

Erika - posted on 01/28/2010

I had my son's done and he's a happy circ'd 2 and a half year old. He cried for about 1 minute and then went to sleep. We had no bleeding problems, or anything. I totally respect both sides of the debate, I chose to have my sons done b/c his father is. Easier to explain, I suppose. As for the babies that died b/c of bleeding from it that is something you would DEFINITELY notice before it was a serious issue.

Tiffany - posted on 01/28/2010

We chose not to have our son circumcised as there are more cons than pro's. Not only does the foreskin protect the penis but without the foreskin it becomes 70% less sensitive.In our community there has been one baby die from bleeding as a result of circumcision and one baby sent to the children's hospital because of bleeding too. I wouldn't want to take the chance.

Dessah - posted on 01/28/2010

We had it done because I figured it's better to get it over with. It's very painful if they decide to do it later in life. Also, (as much as I really HATE thinking about it) I figured it would be easier for him when he becomes sexually active. I don't normally conform to society's rules about things (God made it that way for a reason, why should we munk it up) but I figured it would be easier all around to just take care of it now. Its less likely that he will dwell on "why did they circumcise me?" than for him to wish he hadn't been.

Krystal - posted on 01/27/2010

I had my son's done no only for religious reasons, but because my husband said uncirced boys were often made fun off after football games in the showers and because it has been proven to be more sanitary and well, he also said they look just plain weird.

Jennifer - posted on 01/26/2010

We had our son circumcised the day after he was born. From what I understand, babies' nervous systems aren't well developed when they are that young, so there is relatively little pain, however our Dr. did apply a topical anesthetic to relieve any pain he might feel. His penis was wrapped in gauze, and we just applied generous amounts of vaseline at every diaper change. The gauze fell off in a few days, and his penis was healed before his umbilical stump fell off.

A circumcised male is less likely to get UTIs as an infant and less likely to get STDs later in life. For my husband and me, there was no question about getting it done. There are risks involved, as with any surgical procedure, and include infection and trauma to the penis. We did not have any problems, but you should discuss pros and cons with your Dr. if you have any questions or concerns.

Amanda - posted on 01/26/2010

i had my son done when he was born, i dont think theres ne downfall to getting it done but i would say leaving a boy un circumcised it could cause alot of infections because its alot harder to keep clean because of the extra skin, keep in mind bacteria can build up if its not fully kept clean so i think it would b easier and better for him as hes older to get it done

Natasha - posted on 01/25/2010

I got my son done, because I didn't want confusion or questions from him to daddy when he got older. (My husband has one) I didn't want him being made fun of or anything either.



I just didn't want to risk him feeling different.

Michelle - posted on 01/25/2010

We had our son Circumcised when he was 2 weeks old at our Pediatricians' office. We knew we wanted him circumcised from the moment we were having a boy. Honestly, for us, it was more of a cleanliness issue. Not saying uncircumcised penis' aren't clean, they are just easier to take care of without the foreskin.

My son actually fell asleep during the procedure and would wake up to let out a soft cry then he'd fall asleep again. Most babies cry during the procedure, but they do put a numbing cream on beforehand. It's a little heartbreaking when he cried out in pain (during diaper changes) but he forgot about it after a few days and it healed after 6. We were glad we had it done.

Haley - posted on 01/25/2010

i had my sons done at the hospital as well me and my husband talked about it andi talked about it with my nephew also because my nephew wasnt circum...i dont know how to spell it dang... he said he wished he was. i heard some horror storys but i thought it would be better to do it now rather then later.

Kristi - posted on 01/25/2010

i had my son circumcised the day after he was born, its really sad at first bc they cry every changing but it only takes about a week- a week and a half to heel. the good this is that they will never remember it. (they do not medicate them either so it has got to hurt quite a bit i hears my son in my room and i know it was him bc he was the only baby on the maternity floor at the time)

Darlene - posted on 01/25/2010

We had Tyler's done in the hospital when he was 2 days old. I never considered not having it done, but never really thought about pros and cons.