Being a mom to a little boy, circumcison was a topic I’m so grateful I researched deeply prior to becoming a parent.
The more I uncovered the truth on circumcision , the more I realized how brainwashed of a society we are to believe this is OK.
I thought about the fact that it is illegal to genitally mutilate a baby girl so what is the difference for boys? Questioning this I became awakened to the facts and I couldn’t help but share my findings.
If we really knew what doctors did behind close doors when performing circumcision, no parent would do such a thing to their child.
Here is one of the best videos I’ve seen that explains in detail how circumcision is performed (WARNING: GRAPHIC)
If you took the time to watch the video you were presented with some challenging facts that can be hard to swallow. Here are some of the biggest myths that we have been led to believe..
📍Circumcising baby boys is a safe and harmless procedure.
Surgically removing part of a baby boy's penis causes pain, creates immediate health risks and can lead to serious complications. Risks include infection, hemorrhage, scarring, difficulty urinating, loss of part or all of the penis, and even death. Circumcision complications can and do occur in even the best clinical settings.
📍Circumcision is just a little snip.
Surgical removal of the foreskin involves immobilizing the baby by strapping him face-up onto a molded plastic board. In one common method, the doctor then inserts a metal instrument under the foreskin to forcibly separate it from the glans, slits the foreskin, and inserts a circumcision device. The foreskin is crushed and then cut off. The amount of skin removed in a typical infant circumcision is the equivalent of 15 square inches in an adult male.
📍Circumcision is routinely recommended and endorsed by doctors and other health professionals.
No professional medical association in the United States or anywhere else in the world recommends routine circumcision as medically necessary. In fact, leaving boys intact is becoming the norm in the U.S., as parents realize the risks and harms of circumcision.
📍The baby does not feel any pain during circumcision.
Circumcision is painful. Babies are sensitive to pain, just like older children and adults. The analgesics used for circumcision only decrease pain; they do not eliminate it. Further, the open wound left by the removal of the foreskin will continue to cause the baby pain and discomfort for the 7-10 days it takes to heal.
📍If I don't circumcise my son, he will be ridiculed.
Times have changed and so has people's understanding of circumcision. Today, although the popularity of circumcision varies across geographical areas, nearly half of all baby boys born in the U.S. will leave the hospital intact. Most medically advanced nations do not practice child circumcision. Three quarters of the world's men are intact.
📍A boy should be circumcised to look like his father.
Children differ from their parents in many ways, including eye and hair color, body type, and (of course) size and sexual development. If a child asks why his penis looks different from that of his circumcised father (or brother), parents can say, "Daddy (or brother) had a part of his penis removed when he was a baby; now we know it’s not necessary and we decided not to let anyone do that to you."
📍Routine circumcision of baby boys cannot be compared to Female Genital Mutilation.
Rationales offered in cultures that promote female genital cutting – hygiene, disease prevention, improved appearance of the genitalia, and social acceptance – are similar to those offered in cultures that promote male circumcision. Whatever the rationale, forced removal of healthy genital tissue from any child – male or female – is unethical. Boys have the same right as girls to an intact body, and to be spared this inhumane, unnecessary surgery.
📍To oppose male circumcision is religious and cultural bigotry.
Many who oppose the permanent alteration of children's genitals do so because they believe in universal human rights. All children – regardless of their ethnicity or culture – have the right to be protected from bodily harm.
📍Circumcising newborn baby boys produces health benefits later in life.
There is NO link between circumcision and better health. In fact, cutting a baby boy's genitals creates immediate health risks. The foreskin is actually an important and functional body part, protecting the head of the penis from injury and providing moisture and lubrication. Circumcision also diminishes sexual pleasure later in life.
📍Male circumcision helps prevent HIV.
Claims that circumcision prevents HIV have repeatedly been proven to be exaggerated or false. Only abstinence or safe sex, including the use of condoms, can prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS.
Source: intactamerica.org
Many parents who had their sons circumcised feel immense guilt when they discover the truth. To you, I say, when you know better, you do better. Doing energy work on your child for healing trauma can be beneficial. Also, share the knowledge you’ve learned about circumcision with other parents. We can create change just by speaking up! Just because it was always done, doesn’t mean it is right.
Do you agree?