Boys with a female pediatrician?

[Anonymous]

My boys at 12 felt uncomfortable having a female doctor checking the private parts. We changed to a male doctor.

[Anonymous]

Are parents still require to be in the room when the boy turns 16? 17?

I personally think our female doctor is aware or notices any big changes in our son as he grows. Not just physical changes but the behavioral changes that parents might not pick up on. She mentions things we have questions about. Yes, they do take notes on what our discussions are about but she seem to mention things that I never thought she would bring up again. Perhaps she is just a good note taker.

[Anonymous]

My husband (a straight man in his 40s) prefers female doctors for everything. The only male doctor he’s seen was a urologist for his vasectomy (I guess it makes sense that most doctors who perform those are me).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm new to the area, and I think I found the perfect pediatrics practice. It's really close to the house, they take our insurance, and all the doctors and nurses there I've talked to are lovely and we're very on the same page with parenting choices. My only concern is that it's all women, and I worry that might lead to problems when my son is a bit older. It wouldn't bother him now (our last pediatrician was a woman as well and he loved her as much as my daughters did), but he's only nine and who knows how he'll feel in three or four years.

I just don't want the kids to settle into a new practice, then have to switch again in a few years because my son is uncomfortable. Is this actually something I should consider or am I overthinking this? I know that doctors are doctors, and this place really would be perfect.

Can anyone who has teenage boys confirm if this would be a big deal for them or not? Did they ever want to switch from a female doctor?

When younger my girls went to a male doctor. Around age 13 they wanted to go to the female one and we asked if they could switch. I wouldn't borrow trouble until he brings it up. Your female doctor could retire or move before your son wants to possibly see a male doctor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My boys at 12 felt uncomfortable having a female doctor checking the private parts. We changed to a male doctor.

Same here. My son, um, rose to attention, the last time a female doctor checked his privates and was so embarrassed that he refused to go back to the doctor unless it was a man. A couple years later he realized it wasn't a big deal and decided to switch back, but those early puberty years are rough.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just asked my son who's 14 and still sees a woman (and she's thorough) if it bothered him and he said "I'd rather have a girl feeling my junk than a guy" so take that as you will.

This is how my kids feel too. My boys are 17 and 22 and have always had female doctors.

[Anonymous]

Huh. I have a male obgyn...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn’t bring it up, doctors are doctors.

+1

[Anonymous]

I would treat it the same way you would if you had a daughter that had a male pediatrician as a child. I only have daughters and both asked to see a female pediatrician starting when they were 8. Even if they hadn’t made the request themselves I would have asked as they moved toward puberty, so I would do the same for a boy nearing puberty. Just as it’s ok for a girl to prefer seeing a female doctor, it’s ok for a boy to prefer a male doctor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just asked my son who's 14 and still sees a woman (and she's thorough) if it bothered him and he said "I'd rather have a girl feeling my junk than a guy" so take that as you will.

Do boys regularly get their "junk" felt at the pediatrician? That's never happened for my daughter.

It is important to check for un-descended testicles. If not caught early, this can be a major operation later. Could even threaten fertility.

Also, hernias are common, and can be life threatening if not detected early.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just asked my son who's 14 and still sees a woman (and she's thorough) if it bothered him and he said "I'd rather have a girl feeling my junk than a guy" so take that as you will.

Do boys regularly get their "junk" felt at the pediatrician? That's never happened for my daughter.

It is important to check for un-descended testicles. If not caught early, this can be a major operation later. Could even threaten fertility.

Also, hernias are common, and can be life threatening if not detected early.

Testicular cancer as well. Unlike most other cancers, it's actually most common in young men.

Also, if the boy isn't snipped, they gotta check for skin issues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would treat it the same way you would if you had a daughter that had a male pediatrician as a child. I only have daughters and both asked to see a female pediatrician starting when they were 8. Even if they hadn’t made the request themselves I would have asked as they moved toward puberty, so I would do the same for a boy nearing puberty. Just as it’s ok for a girl to prefer seeing a female doctor, it’s ok for a boy to prefer a male doctor.

I've talked about this to my sister-in-law who's a pediatrician and according to her that switch really only goes one way. She said she sees a lot of girls for the first time when they're 10 or 11 and they wanted to switch to a female doctor, but she rarely ever loses male patients.

I think boys and girls are generally just different in that regard. Girls tend to be more modest while boys are a lot less likely to care. Plus, as a few of the previous replies have mentioned, a lot of boys actually prefer to have a woman doing intimate exams.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just asked my son who's 14 and still sees a woman (and she's thorough) if it bothered him and he said "I'd rather have a girl feeling my junk than a guy" so take that as you will.

Do boys regularly get their "junk" felt at the pediatrician? That's never happened for my daughter.

They check for testicular problems and feel a pulse there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just asked my son who's 14 and still sees a woman (and she's thorough) if it bothered him and he said "I'd rather have a girl feeling my junk than a guy" so take that as you will.

Do boys regularly get their "junk" felt at the pediatrician? That's never happened for my daughter.

It is important to check for un-descended testicles. If not caught early, this can be a major operation later. Could even threaten fertility.

Also, hernias are common, and can be life threatening if not detected early.

Testicular cancer as well. Unlike most other cancers, it's actually most common in young men.

Also, if the boy isn't snipped, they gotta check for skin issues.

In addition, there is penile cancer to screen for, although it’s much more rare than testicular cancer (but the prognosis and likely treatments are often devastating). Suffice to say there are many health reasons boys need to be checked regularly. Men too, but most skip the checks after 18.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just asked my son who's 14 and still sees a woman (and she's thorough) if it bothered him and he said "I'd rather have a girl feeling my junk than a guy" so take that as you will.

Do boys regularly get their "junk" felt at the pediatrician? That's never happened for my daughter.

Because your daughter will go to a gyn for related screenings.