The Circumcision Decision…what should you do?

It’s funny how things seem to come up in conversation, or in life, all of a sudden, all the time. The circumcision thing has been one of those things for me this past week. Last night in class, one of my students said she was having a boy, and we talked a bit about circumcision. She is leaving the decision up to her husband, which I think seems so much easier said than done.
It was also brought up this past weekend in a workshop I attended called “Teaching Newborn Care”, as part of my CEA/MNY requirements. I also watched a video called “Birth As We Know It” which is a documentary about birth, by a woman who developed and teaches a type of preparation for childbirth called Conscious Birthing. (Which as an aside, is one of the names I very much liked for my own birthing business) In this video, there is some footage of a circumcision on a baby in the hospital. It was pretty awful to watch…and in the video they call this procedure “penis reduction surgery”.

All this stuff being said, there seem to be two ends on a long spectrum in this debate over circumcision. One end is: It is better, cleaner, more like all the other little boys (in the US)–or it is a religious and cultural dictate as in the Jewish culture…or it is likened to genital mutilation. Yikes! Why can’t we just let these little guys decide on their own if they want to be circumcised or not?

My high school boyfriend at the age of 16 decided to be circumcised as his parents did not think this was appropriate for their child. All I remember is that it was a very conscious decision for him at the time,and it was very painful to heal from. I wonder how he feels now about his decision…I got a tattoo around the same age and really would like to have it removed these days.

Anyway, some of the things to think about that I picked up from all this talk and think are:

~These days the rate is about 50-50% for boys here in the US, the procedure is not done routinely in hospitals anymore. So your child will not be the only little boy to be uncircumcised in his class.

~Uncircumcised males have greater sexual pleasure than circumcised ones.

~A bad job-botched procedure–can cause the penis to curve to the side, or can cause painful intercourse or urination.

~Some believe that this procedure so early in life can cause baby to relate the message of pain with thier sex…although I do not even think that babies know what their penis is, they surely can know pain.

~Have a mohel (jewish man whose only job is to perform this procedure—does thousands of them) perform the circumcision, if you choose to do it. It is done super quickly–and the baby is held by loving arms–not strapped to a table. The baby is usually a week old, and has had time to learn to breastfeed properly, and gain weight–both of these things strengthing him for the surgery.

Here are some resources to look at further to aid in a decision. Please let me know if you have others to add.

NY Magazine recently had a very extensive article about circumcision.

An interesting look into the Jewish history and interpretation of circumcision.

Another website dedicated solely to circumcision.

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Is Episiotomy Really Necessary?

NO!

Of course not…I gave my post that title to generate a little interest!  But perhaps, first of all you might want to know what an episiotomy is.  Many of my yoga students do not know what this is, and hopefully their doctors will help them to avoid one at all costs.  However, with our over-medicalization of childbirth in this country–episiotomy continues to be one of the most frequently performed surgeries on women in America.  An Episiotomy is really simply put, an cut in the skin between the vagina and anus.  The procedure is intended to make the vaginal opening larger to help the baby out, and is often used in conjunction with other interventions such as vaccuum extraction, or less likely these days, forceps. 

As a midwife I met recently put it, the main problem lies in the repair of the incision, not always the cut itself.  The repair can cause lasting damage to the pelvic floor if the cut is approximated, that is, not lined up exactly-perfectly right.  So–if nothing else–DO NOT LET A RESIDENT SEW UP YOUR VAGINA!!  The pain from a botched job on our holiest of holies can not only make sex eternally painful, but can also make simple bodily functions, such as urinating or having a bowel movement difficult or painful. 

There are many websites out there that have better and more thourough information than I can or want to give here.  My purpose is simply to bring the issue to your attention, and perhaps get you to think about how to avoid an episiotomy for your birth.  See below for my list of resources for more information on Episiotomy.

Lamaze Website is always a good resource for Evidence based Information.

 Childbirth Connection has tons of information on Pelvic Floor Dysfunction.

And the Mayo Clinic site has good information, but more of a technocratic feel.

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Prenatal Yoga at Realbirth in Park Slope

So, last night was my first evening teaching at Realbirths’ space at Tribeca Pediatrics in Park Slope.  It is located at 425 Fifth Ave at 8th St.  Class is Tuesday 6:45-8pm, and Saturday 10:30-11:45am. 

Realbirth is one of NYC’s premier independant childbirth educators, offering many services to the families they serve.  Some of these services are: Breastfeeding support groups, Mothers Groups, Baby Developmental Movement, new parent education, Postpartum Depression Groups, as well as Prenatal and Postnatal Yoga etc.  Check out their website at RealBirth, the offerings are truely mind boggling. 

The Park Slope space at Tribeca Pediatrics is really pretty great, I must say.  The office is ultra-hip, in a downtown Manhattan sort of way.  They have yummy lollipops, and my kids will attest to that!  The toys in the waiting area are mostly wooden and all eco-friendly.  But this is not about the pediatrician’s office…I am really here to talk about Realbirth, and of course my prenatal classes there. 

Anyway, our space is cozy, with cork blocks, ultra-wide mats, and huge bolsters.  I will weigh in on the ultra-wide mats when we have more students…I think they may be a little too wide, but it will make us get cozier with our neighbors, right?  Please come visit me at Realbirth for prenatal yoga on Tuesday night from 6:45-8pm, or Saturday morning from 10:30-11:45am.  Classes are $20, buy 10 get one free!  E-mail me with questions, Beth@BethYoga.com, or call #646 206.0514.

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Breastfeeding is Bestfeeding…

This past weekend, I attended a workshop held by the Childbirth Education Association of Metropolitain New York. It was on Teaching Breastfeeding, taught by Kate Sharp, I.B.C.L.C. I just completed typing up all of my notes from the workshop, and I do not have any reason to wonder why I do not get a chance to post to my blog more often!

I came away from this workshop with tons of information on teaching breastfeeding and a new feeling of confidence in my ability to effectively support and teach new mothers this really important information.

One of the things that I put on a list of “Things to Do” after this workshop was to begin a list of breastfeeding resources for mothers. I thought it would make a nice post for my blog, so here it is. These are local support groups for mothers and mothers to be about breastfeeding. Comment if you have others that you would like to share.

La Leche League Meetings in Brooklyn

Boing Boing has a new Mothers Group that I think is a really nice thing for new mothers to be a part of. Its a great way to meet other new mothers going through the same things you are.

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Happy Birthday Baby!

So, this past weekend my baby turned four. Time has truely flown. As time has passed, I kept saying I would write out her birth story and still have not done so. So, now in honor of her birth, and the work that she and I did to get her into the world, I will write our story.

Noa Leah was born on a Monday morning, to a mother with no idea how intense labor would be. At the time I had never seen a woman in labor, and really only heard stories about drugs, epidurals, and forceps that would bring babies into the world. I was determined to have my baby naturally, no drugs and minimal interventions. Still, I wanted to be in a hospital, “just to be safe”.

I started having mild contractions on Saturday night, after going to the movies and having an amazing Mexican dinner. I thought it was the spicy chicken that had my midsection all a flutter, but as the night wore on, I realized I was in early labor. I put my partner to bed and stayed awake, in and out of the bathtub with mildly painful contractions. If I had only known how much work was ahead, I might have tried to get more sleep!! They always tell you that in Childbirth Ed classes, but did I listen? NO!

I woke Gil at five in the morning on Sunday, and we took a walk around our neighborhood, while I had to stop and squat with each contraction. I thought things were going well. I called my doctor around 7 or 8 am, and he advised that I go take a nap. I remember thinking, is this guy crazy? How can I sleep, my baby is coming…not to mention I felt pretty uncomfortable. But, we lay down, and I napped for a couple of hours. Then we went in to the hospital sometime after noon, as I felt more and more contractions and more and more pain. I got there to have them examine me and tell me I was 1cm dilated. Agh! ONE cm! Unbelievable! Plus, they said I was in early ketosis, which meant basically that I needed to eat some food, or when I came back to the hospital, they would definitely put me on an IV.

So, we went home discouraged. I had Gil go get falafel, and my favorite at the time, foul madamas. We ate, and I felt pretty good, until I started throwing up all the yummy mid-eastern snacks. Time wore on, and finally we decided to head back to the hospital. We were admitted to Labor and Delivery around 10 or 11pm on Sunday, as I was finally 3cm dilated. I labored through the night, and managed to avoid drugs even though the nurses offered them several times. Finally, my water broke with a burst in the wee hours of the morning and was stained with meconium. At some point a couple of hours after this, my doctor arrived around 6am. I remember him looking all fresh and clean, with a shiny watch, and thinking that he smelled like soap. I was sure I did not have that same fresh and clean feeling! He checked me internally, and said that I was dilated fully and could then begin to push. I don’t even remember having an urge to push, though I do remember being very tired. I pushed like my doctor and the nurse told me to…for two and a half hours. My night nurse switched shifts midway through my pushing phase…too funny–and the new nurse was all excited that I was not on an epidural, or other labor drugs. She had lots of great energy and was super positive, and the fresh energy of her and my doctor helped us to get through the second stage of labor. Finally, the baby was born, with very little tearing, and though she was suctioned heavily because of the meconium, we had lots of time to bond skin to skin after she went to the warmer.

After labor was over, I felt great, elated, but tired. We all napped and cuddled together, until my family arrived to see the newest addition. I was not really sure why women ever had another baby while I was in the experience, but sure enough, time passed…and I forgot those overwhelming feelings of pain, and fear. All that I was left with was my beautiful baby, pride in my accomplishment, and awe in the power of birth.

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