GP not being very helpful regarding Circumcision

[Debster7808]

I went to see the GP recently at the first check-up after DS2 was born, and I said that because DS1 was circumcised (-he was born in US, where it kind of gets done as a routine just after boys are born-), we wanted to get DS2 done as well, while he's still a newborn. I was really surprised when the GP tried to talk me out of getting it done, which means that I'm a bit lost as to where next to turn to get this done. I can understand that circumcision isn't available on the NHS, which is fine, but if I want to go private, don't I need a GP referral? Should I just seek a second GP's opinion?
Anyone have any experience of getting their boys circumcised in a culture that generally doesn't do it?

Your poor baby.

I sincerely hope you find no one willing to perform this mutilation on your baby.

And once again,have you read those links yet?

Some people are just WEIRD.
By the time of a birth of a second son, how can anybody fail to realise this is a highly controversial issue? Including within the USA.

The more I think about this the harder I find it to understand. I can sort of understand people feeling the need to do it for religious reasons (although still don't agree with it) but why anyone would put a child through an unneeded operation for no reason other than "I want to" beggars belief.

I very much doubt any reputable surgeon would agree to do perform such an operation on a poor unsuspecting child.

But it is mutilation! And babies have died from having it done, how on earth can you take that risk?

Are you really willing to do it just because you think the look nicer? Utter madness.

Mutilation

Web definitions:
an injury that causes disfigurement or that deprives you of a limb or other important body part.
wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

I'm sure your son will be thrilled to grow up knowing his mother didn't think he was perfect enough as he was when he was born.

it becomes a non-painful operation

Not non-painful post op.

if someone told you they were going to get their baby daughters bits trimmed a bit because it 'looks tidier' what would you say?

much cleaner and healthier willy

Myths

And you want to mutilate your baby precisely why?

Would it not be better to teach him to wash?

Or had you considered having his toes removed- that way there will be nowhere for the athlete's foot fungus to take hold.

Looks better?! Now you are being ridiculous! They look how they look. Will you make him get a nose job if he happens to have a big nose? We don't do it in the uk because it's UNECESSARY. Surely the fact that the private hospitals aren't willing to take your cash tells you something?

Your poor poor ds. I'm amazed that anyone would think of doing this to their baby for cosmetic reasons. What happens if your ds grows up to be not as good looking as you expect? Are you going to arrange for him to have cosmetic surgery then?

One of the weirdest threads I've read on MN in 8 years of being a member!

People used to think that docking dogs' and horses' tails made them look "nicer and tidier". And cutting terrier's ears into points made them look cute .

Whatever about religious reasons, doing this for cosmetic reasons is very strange indeed.

I mean, how many people exactly do you expect to be looking at his penis and rejecting him on the basis that it doesn't look tidy?

Would the vulva look tidier if it had the labia majori excised surgically? Under anaesthetic of course? Or ultratidy with the labia minora off.. There would be less risk of thrush as there would not be a yeast friendly warm moist environment....In some countries it is socially acceptable to chop off the clitoris.

You want him to go through a painful, mutilating procedure because you think it looks nicer and tidier?

What planet are you on?

If you have a daughter, why not have her clitoris hood removed as well?

It is mutilation

Interesting first post

OP - read the links posted.

"Each to their own."

No this isn't a case of each to their own. What part of "it isn't a medical necessity" do you not understand? The health service in this country is funded by the tax payer. The NHS will not perform unnecessary medical mutilations procedures at the expense of the tax payer.

I am willing to bet that the main reason that doctors in the US are so willing to undertake this horrible practice is that they get paid for it.

Oh, it's cosmetic surgery. Good job you approve of eyelids, eh?

And of course without the risks of the operation itself there is the risk of the anesthetic. DS had to have an operation on his penis when he was 18 months old and as much as being worried about the operation I was equally worried about him being anaesthetised - why would you do that when not needed?

This is an interesting thread because it raises the issue of what rights a parent has over their child's body, and the vulnerable position some children are in when a parent makes a decision based on cultural preferences.

There are moves to make it illegal. Quite rightly. What kind of moronic excuse for a parent slices bits off their baby because they think it looks nicer?

It is NOT as simple as that, not at all. My dh is very clean, because he takes care of himself & cleans himself. He is never dirty.

There is NO GOOD REASON to mutilate a child for a cleaner penis. It is not true. You have bought into it because it suits you to believe that you took part of your sons body off to help him keep clean! You & your dh teach him how to keep clean. Would you chop off a girls labial lips to help her keep clean?

There is also teh risk that your ds penis will harden due to being exposed to the elements. I can't remember what it is called now, but the head goes leathery. I am sure someone will post a link.

How do you know he will thank you for it? There are groups of men who wish they had been given the choice by their parents.

READ THE LINKS OP.