Friday, November 8, 2013

The Dangers of Circumcision

When I was pregnant with my son in 2012, I had heard and seen the words "circumcision controversy" and "his body his rights" while on the internet and talking with friends. However, I was still very uneducated on the matter of circumcision and I had the mindset that since I did not have a penis and knew next to nothing about the care that comes with having one, that I would listen to the advice of my fiance (the father of my son) and my OB/GYN. At the time, I believed they knew more than I did and were best equipped to inform me of the right decision.
Fast forward to February. I was induced on February 27th, 2012 at 6 a.m. Almost exactly 12 hours later, my son was born. He was born at 7 lbs 2 oz and was the most beautiful little boy I had ever seen (I may be a bit biased). The next morning, they told me his weight had dropped a little and they did not want to perform the circumcision in the hospital because they wanted him to gain some weight back. So we took him home with the plans to have the procedure done at my OB/GYN's office.
A few days later, my one week old son and I are sitting in the waiting room. I had this horrible feeling in the pit of my stomach and wanted to bundle him back up and run out the door and never look back. I knew the basics of what circumcision entailed and my gut was telling me to not go through with it. But, being naive and misinformed, I believed it would be best. The typical reasons for circumcision ran through my head; it was cleaner, it was healthier, and it would help him later in life to prevent infection or disease. They took him back while I had to stay in the waiting room. That sent red flags up all over again, but I figured it was for sterility and to keep from passing on germs. When I was allowed back to get him, after what seemed like hours but was probably only 30 minutes or so, they told me "He was perfect and slept the whole time." I was relieved because I thought they numbed him enough to where he didn't feel a thing.
After we came home, I saw the wound during his diaper change. It was the worst wound I have ever seen in my life. He was purple, and bruised, and bloody, and any time I touched him to clean the wound or bandage him he screamed bloody murder. My heart broke and I cried right along with him. The thought still makes me sick to my stomach. Now that I have done my research and actually listened to what others tried to tell me, I absolutely regret my decision to have my son circumcised. I would walk through the fires of hell if it would make him whole again. My heart aches every time I change his diaper. I know now what was stolen from him, without him even knowing what was happening let alone being able to consent. I have done many terrible, and even illegal, things in my life but this is my biggest regret. I wish every day I had listened to my instincts and run out of that office. Society deems people adults at 18. We can not smoke, or vote, or enlist in the military, or get tattoos or piercings until 18 or older. If a male wants to have a circumcision, it should be his informed choice. We, as a nation, should stop the mutilation of our defenseless babies.


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email your circumcision regret story to:
regrettingcircumcision@gmail.com

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