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Circumcision in the DC area
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Anonymous
| We debated and ultimately concluded that it would be cosmetic surgery and didn't do it because there were no religious reasons for it. |
Anonymous
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If our next child is a boy we will not circ either. My family was a little surprised when we mentioned this because both my brothers/Dad are but they completely understand our decision (my husband is not).
Regardless, if we were going to circ, I'd have a moyhel do it (and we're not Jewish but I think they do the best job  There's one locally who is also an OB and she did a great job on my friend's kiddo.
BTW, we live in NW DC. |
Anonymous
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I would say the percentage is higher than 50-50 in the US Christian community. We are your basic WASPs and when I was surveying our friends back when we had our son, everyone had their son circumcised. FYI there are certain hygiene benefits to it, and studies have shown a lower incidence of STDs and HIV, though I am sure someone could point out contrary studies or flaws with those.
It is a personal decision of course, and best done ASAP after birth. |
Anonymous
Not sure that the "ASAP after birth" part is correct. We Jews do it on the 8th day, and there have been studies that show that it's the ideal time to do it. I don't remember the reasons why, I think it has to do with vitamin K (??) levels. My understanding is that the only reason it's done in the hospital after birth is for convenience. Mohels are (usually) more experienced than OBs in doing circs (after all, some of them do them several times a day). And in this area, there are at least a few mohels who are also board-certified MDs as well, so you don't even have to compromise on that part. |
Anonymous
| We had both of our boys circumcised, but following the majority isn't the reason to do it, in my opinion. So if you're leaning against it, I wouldn't let numbers be the thing that changes your mind. |
Anonymous
| I have no idea, to be honest. My circle it's probably more like 90% uncirced, including some Jews. That said, this is a tiny sample. I wouldn't worry about your boy not blending in either way, to be honest. |
Anonymous
| I am actually glad to hear that it's not just jews doing it, though that is what I see with my circle of friends. |
Anonymous
| Both my boys are not circ'ed. Now that they are old enough to notice, my 7 yo thanked me for not "cutting off part of his penis." I was floored as we never talked to him about it that way and have always called it his foreskin, not "part of his penis." It made me happy again about our decision. What swayed us is seeing it as unnecessary and learning about how mistakes aren't as uncommon as you would like to think and even the small chance of his penis being damaged for an essentially cosmetic procedure (we're christian) just didn't make sense to us. Good Luck! |
Anonymous
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We have one son who is not. Among our friends who are not Jewish, I would say it is around 50/50. The trend in the US in general is to do it less compared to how often it was done in the past.
One interesting point: before I gave birth our pediatrician (at a "meet the doctor" open house) said that he took no position on circumcision and it was a personal decision. After my son was born and we told him that we were not doing it, he said "good, there is no reason for your son to have it done." I didn't ask but I assume he meant there are reasons that didn't apply to us - medical, religious, etc. He did say something to the effect that the STD reasons don't justify it in the United States. |
Anonymous
Phew, me too because if only jews were doing it, then what, exactly??? |
Anonymous
I'm not the poster you quoted, but I think you're being too sensitive. If I were Jewish, I would be glad to know that gentiles were circumcising, too. |
Anonymous
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Anonymous
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Just wanted to post my own experience (which is different than the other NW DC parents). As there seems to be some division along racial and religious lines.
I do believe that people from white/Christian backgrounds circumcize more than the national average (just my hunch), but in my own social circle (predominately white and Christian in upper NW) I have found only a few more boys to be circumcized than not. I think I know of 5 out of 9 boys that ARE circumcized. My own boys are not circumcized. Your doctor may be off by a little bit, but I don't think much. I think the days when you had to worry about whether your son would be a social outcaste if he was/wasn't circumcized are over. There are many factors to consider, but I researched this pretty carefully as I really struggled with the decision. I think when I opted not to circumcize (4 years ago), the numbers in this area were more like 60% circ, 40% uncirc. Good luck to you. With all the other factors to consider, I personally wouldn't worry about this one too much. (Now, if I planned to move back to Nebraska or something-- it might be different, as I suspect the numbers of circumcized boys in that area are much higher) |
Anonymous
| Thank you for the thoughtful replies. My husband and I are still in the midst of deciding. Our main reason not to is the pain factor. Our main reason to is religious (we are jewish) and social (we are nervous about making him the odd man out) but it seems like the social issue is not as much of an issue as we thought based on some of your feedback - when we "counted" your responses were pretty even - about 50% of you said your sons were, and 50% said they weren't! |
Anonymous
| I think if you are jewish you should do it. I say this not lightly b/c I know it's a difficult decision. But in the short term if he goes to a jewish preschool or to Sunday school he will fit in better there. But, more importantly, what if he decides later in life to be more observant than you are? What if he feels that you deprived him of something? I think that those things are not unlikely. |