Home birth vs Circumcision

[grendal82002]

I have a question the other night I was watching the documentary "Business of Being Born." It's about how its healthier to give a home birth or birth with a midwife than go to the hospital, where there is too much intervention. It was a good documentary produced by Ricki Lake. Why I watched? Bored want to know a little of everything than a lot of one thing and nothing else.

Anyway the question. What is the ratio between between families having home births and choosing to still circumcised, and whats the ration of them choosing not to circumcised? Is there a correlation? Is it typical to not circumcised if they gave a home birth? And are most Doulas and Midwives against circumcision?

Sorry for all the questions but I thought about these as the documentary went on.

[nummies]

I'm not sure of the direct numbers or anything.

I will tell you that my homebirth midwives are very much against circumcision and say so in their new client folders. Well, they don't say not to do it, they just give a really accurate account of the problems that can arise with circing and the procedure.

[mrsfrenchy]

Originally Posted by nummies

I'm not sure of the direct numbers or anything.

I will tell you that my homebirth midwives are very much against circumcision and say so in their new client folders. Well, they don't say not to do it, they just give a really accurate account of the problems that can arise with circing and the procedure.

:

[paquerette]

Most doulas and midwives I know are anti-circ, and some will not work with people who intend to circ. You'd be hard pressed to find hospital staff with those policies!

[Fellow Traveler]

I would think the numbers circumcised are quite a bit lower but not where we want them to be. I would not be surprised to hear most dulas or midwifes are anti circ but there is a still a strong current even among homebirthers, but the numbers are almost certainly lower.

[MommytoB]

Yes Homebirthing is lower at times for the circing if you get a against circumcision midwife/doula.

There are alot more against circumcision midwifes/doulas than a pro-circ/neutral one.

Plus these people ask at the first time you end up pregnant then again at the finding out the sex u/s.

Most of them will give you a packet on against circumciion stuff and foreskin care.

But if sadly a midwife/doula is neutral - she will say Nothing- and the home birther will end up at the boy's pedi .

The pedi will ask about 'circ'ing and then they proably will be face to face with the decision to sadly not be able to have time to think about their decision and more likely it would sadly end up to be a yes unless if a pedi was more against but those type are hard to find .

Some homebirthers are natural all the way as in No doctor visits unless the kids are sick that it couldn't be home treated at home.

[Juliacat]

My dh was born at home and his parents took him to have him circumcised a few days later--a decision MIL regrets to this day.

[robertandenith]

I've been thinking myself to become a doula, just because I LOVE birthing and will love to educate people regarding breastfeeding and circumcision. I 'met' a doula who is FURIOUSLY procirc. She says that ALL the anti-circ activists are liers and that circ is beneficial and protects boys from some sort of foreskin epidemic. She's from DONA too. When I told her that circ is not necessary, not because of what I've heard or read, but because of factual experience (my family members that are intact and my own son - how healthy they are with their foreskin) she shut off the comment section of her blog and never responded to my question.

[Quirky]

I think you're going to get a lot of variation......I know of several homebirthers who got their boys circed. I.e., "cut my baby, not me." Makes NO sense to me how you can be a diehard homebirther, hypnobirther, extended breastfeeder, no vaxer, co-sleeper, etc. and so forth.....my only thought is that for some dads, that's the issue where they draw the line, the one thing they want to have control over and be "normal" on, and the wife caves so she can get her way on the other fronts.

I think also midwives and doulas vary. Many are anti-circ, and very vocally so. Others are anti-circ but see their jobs as supporting the woman and parental choice, so they don't make too much noise about circ. Others are going to be pro-circ for various cultural reasons. I know of midwives who also perform circumcisions both in the clinical context and elsewhere.

[tutucrazy]

Originally Posted by Quirky

I think you're going to get a lot of variation......I know of several homebirthers who got their boys circed. I.e., "cut my baby, not me." Makes NO sense to me how you can be a diehard homebirther, hypnobirther, extended breastfeeder, no vaxer, co-sleeper, etc. and so forth.....my only thought is that for some dads, that's the issue where they draw the line, the one thing they want to have control over and be "normal" on, and the wife caves so she can get her way on the other fronts.

I think also midwives and doulas vary. Many are anti-circ, and very vocally so. Others are anti-circ but see their jobs as supporting the woman and parental choice, so they don't make too much noise about circ. Others are going to be pro-circ for various cultural reasons. I know of midwives who also perform circumcisions both in the clinical context and elsewhere.

agreed.

[mi.birthdoula]

I am a doula in Mi, and I am definitely an intactivist, however when it comes to clients, I will present them with the information on intact care, and the benefits of such. I will not tell them my personal stance at that point, I will tell them to look it over and we will discuss it at the next appointment. So far, in every case of a boy, the parents WILL ask something along the lines of, "So should we not circ?" My response is always, "that is something that only you, your partner, and the baby should decide, it is not my place to tell you what to do." this usually is followed by the question of, "well, what would you do if you were in our situation?" at that point I will let them know my true feelings on it. Since finding out we are having a boy in Aug, I've been responding, "well, I'm not doing it to my son, if that helps with your decision." So far, that reply has prevented circ more times than not.

[Night_Nurse]

On a local homebirth group (yahoo list) I'm on, the comments seems to be about 50/50 whenever the topic comes up. About half the moms still go ahead and take their babies in for a circ after a home birth. And yes, this is after knowing all the facts.

[tutucrazy]

Originally Posted by Night_Nurse

On a local homebirth group (yahoo list) I'm on, the comments seems to be about 50/50 whenever the topic comes up. About half the moms still go ahead and take their babies in for a circ after a home birth. And yes, this is after knowing all the facts.

[frontierpsych]

that's sad.

I don't know any homebirthers who circ around here, but rates here are pretty low as it is. Not circing is pretty much the default here I guess.

[proudmomof4]

Originally Posted by mi.birthdoula

I am a doula in Mi, and I am definitely an intactivist, however when it comes to clients, I will present them with the information on intact care, and the benefits of such. I will not tell them my personal stance at that point, I will tell them to look it over and we will discuss it at the next appointment. So far, in every case of a boy, the parents WILL ask something along the lines of, "So should we not circ?" My response is always, "that is something that only you, your partner, and the baby should decide, it is not my place to tell you what to do." this usually is followed by the question of, "well, what would you do if you were in our situation?" at that point I will let them know my true feelings on it. Since finding out we are having a boy in Aug, I've been responding, "well, I'm not doing it to my son, if that helps with your decision." So far, that reply has prevented circ more times than not.

I think that is a very good approach - you are getting your point across without being "militant" about it. My midwife in Grand Rapids, MI used the same approach - although she didn't need it with me. I am German and Germans "don't do circumcision", so I got the information I needed back then to communicate a firm "no way" to our pediatrician.

[njeb]

It was my decision to have a home birth that saved my sons from circumcision. My midwives were very anti-circumcision and educated me about it. If I'd decided to give birth in the hospital, the inexperienced, insecure person I was back then could easily have been talked into cutting her sons. They are now grown men, and quite happy to be intact!

So, I'd say that the circ. rate for home birthers is much lower than among the general population. Of course, you have to be a free-thinker who questions the status quo to have a home birth in the first place. Such people are also more likely to question other routine medical procedures, such as circumcision.

[pigpokey]

Here I think it is more typical for the home birthed boy to be intact.

[FiveLittleMonkeys]

Both of my midwives (two different pregnancies) have been against circumcision. My thought on the matter is why would I put forth the effort to have a nice, gentle homebirth just to take my newborn son in to have his penis cut? It just doesn't make sense!

[liseux]

[QUOTE=Quirky;13779517]I think you're going to get a lot of variation......I know of several homebirthers who got their boys circed. I.e., "cut my baby, not me." Makes NO sense to me how you can be a diehard homebirther, hypnobirther, extended breastfeeder, no vaxer, co-sleeper, etc. and so forth.....my only thought is that for some dads, that's the issue where they draw the line, the one thing they want to have control over and be "normal" on, and the wife caves so she can get her way on the other fronts./QUOTE]

That is so crazy to me. I would go have a sched. c/s in a heartbeat if it was between the baby being intact and having a homebirth. But.. choosing between the two is a logic I can't relate to at all. When I planned homebirths I only did it b/c it seemed safest for the baby, it wasn't about me. Cindy Crawford has mentioned this was the case for her, she gave in to dh's demand to circ so she could have her homebirth and do what she wanted to do.