How do you guys get a circumcision... that had a homebirth?!?

[CarlyB]

If we have a boy we want to have a circumcision but how do you go about that with a homebirth (this will be our first one)? We are considering unassisted so would we need to figure out a way to get a Vit K shot also or is it not needed? Any answers would be great!!!

          Carly B

[DarlingSweetHeart]

I have a friend who had her son at home 6 months ago.
She said it was a hassle, but don't let that discourage you.

I don't know if she waited the 8 days or so, but she eventually called the hospital and inquired who would be able to do that for her son.

She didn't hear back from them for awhile.  For some reason her dr that she had been seeing (at the hospital)  refused to do it because he did not deliver...anyhow, she stayed friendly and just said something to the effect that she would hate to go to the other game in town (their competitor) in order to get this procedure done.  Within a couple of hours after that, she got the procedure done.

You are brave!!

[YoopreMama]

If we have a boy we want to have a circumcision but how do you go about that with a homebirth (this will be our first one) ?  We are considering unassisted so would we need to figure out a way to get a Vit K shot also or is it not needed? Any answers would be great!!!  Carly B

Hi, Carly--
With our last birth (1st at home), we brought him to his regular pediatrician...around 10-14 days after.  The 8th day (blood clotting factor being the highest) would have been ideal, but we went when we could.  He didn't have Vitamin K...

It was outpatient and I attended <shudder>...the 1st the Dr. had ever had THAT happen.  The aftercare was tricky, I was used to the nurses for boy #1 doing that, and it was a little stressful, but we did OK...returned him once to learn we needed to be more "aggressive" in caring for it.   

I know there are a few other ladies here w/ experience...bet they'll post soon! 

P.S. How far along are you?  Best wishes. 

[cecac]

We did not give our homebirth babies vitamin K.  It's weird, making those decisions.  Perhaps reading up on it to see if you want that shot or not will help you with that decision?

Our one homebirth boy, we found a pediatrician that does circumcision at his office, he's all set up.  We just had to call and set up the appointment right after birth.  I think we did wait until the 8th day.

LOL, Yooper, I SO did not go.   I just concentrated on not crying while I was waiting.   Aren't we such a lovely mess after birth?  I do not remember any problems with the care of it at home.

And with this boy, I will go back to the pediatrician again because, goodness, how much does a boy need to go through in his first day?  We much prefer to wait til the 8th day or a little later.  Lol, we were just remembering our first boy--he's 15 now--circumcision, Vit K, and Hep B because Grandpa had cancer and we didn't know if we would have to take baby into the hospital with that.  Well, he survived anyway.  

Blessings and Congratulations,
Cara

[YoopreMama]

Here's the thread on Vitamin K:
http://www.welltellme.com/discuss/index.php/topic,2359.0.html
Thanks, Cara!

[mommie]

we had a family doc who was jewish do it for us on the 8th day...he was very laid back and referred to us by a lady who helped at our birth (our birth was unassissted)... I would call around and let the doc office know you are doing an unassissted and would like to know if they could do a circumcision for you if you have a boy... If you plan to do it on the 8th day or not get a vit k or anything let them know to make sure you have a doc who will work with you in that situation...You just want to make sure you have a doc who is on the same page as you so you don't have any one calling you in for doing unassissted or not getting well baby check ups or immunizations, etc if that is the route you choose...that is why I would be very specific on the phone w/ someone while you are preggo to make sure you don't show up after the baby is born and have problems...we didn't do the vit k...just waited till the 8th day...

[MommyGus]

My DH and I think a Mohel is the way to go.  He came to our home.  And it healed very nicely.  We had it done on the 8th day and didn't worry about vit K .  You could PM me and I will give you his contact info.  He is in Denver, but he may know of someone in your area (Maybe you are in Denver, I don't know  )

I wouldn't call around and tell people that you are having an unassisted birth.  Maybe say something like " We would like to have our son circumcised on the 8th day, rather than right after birth.  Is that something we could do at your office?" After you get to know them you might be able to offer more info.  Quite a few Dr's don't like home birth, and I think they would like unassisted birth even less.  You might run into trouble if you give out too much info to total strangers.
HTH
MommyGus

[mommie]

Well, most likely they will find out (about the unassisted birth-when they ask about hospital records/doctor/ped, etc...) so I always figured it was better to ask  those q's (wether they're favorable or not to those things) on the phone w/ none of your name/info given cause after you show up at their office and give names, addresses and #'s and than they find out you'd probably have more trouble if they didn't like that...whatever you do don't try it yourself..I've heard horror stories!

[CarlyB]

You guys are so great...with great advice!!! I have 2 boys and my OB/GYN did both of their's at the hospital. Maybe they would consider doing it in the office even if I do a homebirth. I guess I will call around when I get closer to my due date or if we find out what gender the baby is.

 I live in Georgia and don't know anyone locally that has had a homebirth, so I am the first of several friends that plan on doing a homebirth. I guess I am the one that is doing things first and getting info for them.


I WOULD NEVER DO IT MYSELF!!! I can not believe people have tried it.

If anyone else has any other info or suggestions, that would be great.

[healthybratt]

I didn't use a Mohel, but I learned on the circ thread, that my son was done by the doc in the same method that the Mohel uses (except it was done on the 3rd day instead of the 8th).  Just watching the healing, the growth and the overall outcome of the circ my son had, I'm very pleased with the results and the procedure caused him very little distress.  If I were to do it again, I'd be very inclined to try a Mohel based on what I've learned on WTM. 

[MamaPeach]

We have used a mohel for both of our sons with great outcomes on both. We are always impressed with how quick the mohel is. From the time he picks up his first instrument for the procedure, to the point where he's wrapping it up and putting the diaper back on is less than 2 minutes. Since this is his profession and all he does, he has more expertise and knowledge than a pediatrician or doctor would. He gives great instructions for caring for it, along with his cell phone number, in case you have questions or need to get a hold of him.

I am pretty sure you can get information for one from either a Jewish synagogue or maybe even a Messianic Jewish fellowship. 

[prolifeguyswife]

We were blessed with two girls born at home, but had planned to use a Mohel that my midwife knew. I did tons of research on it (the sex of both babies was a surprise, so we wanted to be prepared), and I really believe that using a Mohel vs. a pediatrician is safer. They take less "off" and generally do it on the 8th day, when the Vitamin K has naturally kicked in. Plus, my friends who used one said it looks better and seems healthier than their boys circumcised by a pediatrician. Just my .02!

[all4him]

We have 3 sons, and they were all done the same procedure by different people. My first born was takin to a dr. office (yes, I went along) I think he was almost 2 weeks old, becuz the dr, was on vacation or something? I was not allowed in, but heard him screaming! Oh, my mother heart was just screaming too! They came and got me when it was finished, and led me back to where he was laying NAKED-- still screaming! I was thinking never again! My second one was takin to a Christian DR -- I was watching-- (VERY INTERESTING!) He didn't cry at all--- they only took his diaper off, and i was basicly holding him~~ My 3rd son was circumcised by my midwife on my bed laying cuddled against me, when he was less then an hr old-- Now that is the way to go! NOTE: check out Prayer Request link-- my SIL posted a request for my midwife-- she is waiting to hear from the 7 judges to hear her future! go to www.savehomebirth.com

[marksgirl]

xhusbnd: My first 3 boys were not circumcised.
Dear husband: we had a boy, and never even discussed the issue until AFTER he was born    NOT a good time for an emotional decision like it was for me.  Dh wanted it, so we just called up a ped. that his other children had gone to and we set an appt.  We were close to 8 days, but not exactly.  I wanted to hold him, well actually have dh hold him, b/c I refused to watch!  but they wouldn't allow that; he had to be strapped into some special thing.  I waited in the other room while dh went with ds.  Everything healed fine.  Don't know where we'd go this time if it's another boy.  Might look into a mohel.  We didn't run into any issues w/ the Dr for having a home birth (in Washington), and never went back for anything else.  No insurance, so we paid cash.  Think it was some ridiculous amount of money for such a quick procedure, but oh well.

[floydian]

Boy #1  My OB did my first boy.  He was a Christian and did it on the 8th day for us.  He did not use anasthesia.  I have requested that the docs use it after this son.

Boy #2.  Done by a Jewish doctor on the 8th day.  He had two quick shots.  It was very quick, tho he was fussy the rest of the day.

Boy #3.  Done in our family doctor's office.  He was a good friend and a Christian.  He also did 2 quick shots and performed it on the 8th day.  After I nursed him, this little guy was fine the rest of the day.

Boy #4.  Done in another doc's office on the 8th day.  Another Christian, tho I didn't know him.  He used the clamp thingy.  He did use the shots.  This was my least favorite procedure, I think mainly because I like it to be done and over with.  The clamp lasted a couple of days.  I really didn't notice much more fussiness with it, I just didn't like dealing with it.

Boy #2 was the fussiest of all of them and had the roughest time with the whole thing, but really his fussiness only lasted the rest of the day.

The last two boys, I had to take in without my husband along.  I was not in the room with them, but could hear them crying from the waiting room.  I nursed them when it was over and they quieted right down.

I'd recommend asking the local midwife in your area or call family doctors in your area.  I've found that family doctors are more willing to work with me than pediatricians.

[petrimama]

I didn't homebirth, but I also didn't want my boys circumcised in the hospital, so we used a mohel who was friendly to Christians who respect our Jewish religious heritage.  He did not do the whole bris, so he was only at our house for ten minutes:  5 to calm me, 1 to wash, 20 seconds to circumcise, and the rest to give instructions on care and pack up.  He was great.  You can try calling the closest synagogue or Jewish school to find a good mohel.     ~L

[Blue Rose]

I didn't homebirth, but I also didn't want my boys circumcised in the hospital, so we used a mohel who was friendly to Christians who respect our Jewish religious heritage.  He did not do the whole bris, so he was only at our house for ten minutes:  5 to calm me, 1 to wash, 20 seconds to circumcise, and the rest to give instructions on care and pack up.  He was great.  You can try calling the closest synagogue or Jewish school to find a good mohel.     ~L

This is what we did too. Got the name and number from a friend and had
ds done on the 8th day. We did homebirth and I had been kind of nervous about who we would have do it. Kind of a serious little procedure, KWIM?  Anyway, we were very pleased with the time we spent at his house, his brief explanation, his quick procedure, and how well it was done and healed. It cost $200, which was more than the dr would have charged, but less than the full Bris ceremony. If I had it to do again, I would definately go with a MOHEL. He was very friendly towards us and Dh and I were very pleased and would use him again.
~Blue Rose

[skelliott2]

I had a girl with my homebirth, but my midwife asked me before the birth if we would want one for a boy.  She worked with a doctor who would perform them for homebirth children.  So, maybe the midwife would have a suggestion.

[healthybratt]

As a courtesy to the member who started this thread and those participating in the conversation and to keep subjects more organized and easier to find, please attempt to stay on topic as much as possible.

If the conversation triggers a new subject of interest, please search the forum for a more appropriate thread for the discussion.

http://www.welltellme.com/discuss/index.php/topic,144.0.html

When one cannot be found, start a new one.

If you'd like to have a more personal conversation that would otherwise derail the topic, please take advantage of your ability as a forum member to send personal messages.

Thanks.

~hb

[CountyCork]

We just called our local medical clinic and asked for a ped to do a circ.  No trouble.

If you want a lovely Jewish doc to do it in a very artful way, you could call your local temple and ask if they could recommend a Jewish pediatrician.

Maybe there's an internet training video?  Oh, my, just kidding!   

[mexmarr]

Does anybody know the proper pronunciation for "Mohel"?  I am thinking about calling one, but would like to say ot correctly.  Thanks.

[MommyGus]

I have always heard it pronounecd -moyel-rhymes with oil
 

[YoopreMama]

I'd HIGHLY recommend that you ask the doctor personally, and not rely on an OB Dept. nurse or receptionist to inform you if someone do circs.  We were misinformed, and it ended up being a pretty unpleasant experience seeing a Dr. who was opposed to circs.  Wish I'd have known that 1st!

[Amber]

I'd HIGHLY recommend that you ask the doctor personally, and not rely on an OB Dept. nurse or receptionist to inform you if someone do circs.  We were misinformed, and it ended up being a pretty unpleasant experience seeing a Dr. who was opposed to circs.  Wish I'd have known that 1st!

I realize this is a very old post, but as I sit here in tears from the unpleasant experience we are going through right now involving my 16 month old son....I read this post and shout an aggressive "Amen!"

[Cycami]

We called a pediatrician's office after our first homebirth (second son) and they said they would have to see the baby first and then refer him to a urologist (We now have a  pediatrician who can do the procedure in his office on the day we make the appointment). We wanted it done on the 8th day so we contacted a synagogue, and they referred us to a mohel. He was very expensive but not as much as the doctor + urologist, plus he came to our house for the procedure.

My first son was circumcised at the hospital and it was very easy to clean because he had a ring on his, whereas the rabbi used a sharp knife and gauze and did not remove quite so much tissue, which I didn't like because it seemed messier while healing (I had to keep KY jelly on it). However, I later read that the knife method used by traditional mohels is actually supposed to be safer and less painful than the clamps or plastibell.

Why would a dr who is opposed to circs perform the procedure?

[MommyGus]

I'm still all for using the Mohel.  Or finding someone who uses the Mogen Clamp.  Not all Mohels use the Mogen Clamp either.  Our first son had the plasti bell, and the second son the Gamco Clamp.  Those where a whole lot more stressful on the baby (and Mommy).  Our last two with the mogen clamp method, very quick procedure (30 seconds) and healing process (less than a week).  Our Mohel told us to keep noesporin on it for a few days (he gave us a small tube to take home), no gauze or anything else.  I know of two good Mohels now if anyone needs one.  One is in the Denver area, and one is in Omaha.  Just PM me if you are looking for one near those areas

[MarineWife]

MommyGus I have tried pming you but for some reason the site won't let me?? Could you give me the info for the mohel you know in Denver?? Thanks!!

[MommyGus]

The Mohel I used was Jay Feder.  He is AWESOME!  But, he is in Israel now.  :-(  A friend of mine called Jay's office and got a recommendation for Aver Jacobs  (303) 720 0818  She said he was also very good.  Good luck!