Content warning: This article describes injury to a child and sensitive medical procedures. Please take care while reading.
A Missouri couple faces charges after attempting to circumcise their infant son with a utility tool, and this story deserves a special place in the annals of poor parenting decisions.
According to court documents, Tyler Wade Gibson, 35, and his wife, Bailey Gibson, 32, from rural Missouri, took their son to the hospital last month after attempting the circumcision. The documents state Tyler researched and “prayed” before he tried it, but it didn’t “go as planned,” and he was “not prepared for the amount of bleeding,” court documents said.
Thankfully, Tyler called a medical help hotline and told them what he’d done, and the couple took the poor kid to the Columbia University Hospital in Columbia, MO, for treatment. Bailey and Tyler had to wait a while to see a doctor, so they left. Here’s hoping the boy’s alright.
The hospital called the Missouri Department of Family Services
Afterward, hospital staff did what they’re supposed to do in an unusual situation like that, and called the Missouri Department of Family Services to tell them what happened: A child was brought into the facility injured in a botched home circumcision, but his parents took off before the boy could be treated.
Tyler was later found at his home, arrested, and charged with one felony count of unauthorized practice of medicine, and one felony count of child abuse. Bailey, meanwhile, faces one count of felony child abuse.
At least Bailey told investigators she was “very hesitant and unsure” about her husband performing the procedure, but she didn’t answer when asked why she let him do it. Both parents are currently free on bond.
Tyler pleaded not guilty in early December. Bailey’s arraignment is expected in January. Her attorney said she plans to plead not guilty, too.
“Usually, I’m a fan of DIY projects at home. But in this case…”
The situation could have been worse, and hopefully, the boy is not permanently injured. There’s some silver lining, because it generated some choice social media comments like, “wE wERe jUst foLloWinG sCriPtuRe,” “Are mental faculties evaluated? Those ppl sound like sadists,” and “Their cellmates probably won’t botch anything.” Finally, “Usually, I’m a fan of DIY projects at home. But in this case…”
News of the DIY-home-circumcision came around the same time that Missouri’s ban on “child mutilation” surgeries, a code for gender-affirming care, was upheld in court. Meanwhile, with the power of “prayer,” a Missouri couple tried to circumcise their son, or as one comment pointed out, “Oh, but the genital mutilation surgeries!” and finally, “The sad truth, even in a Dictatorship these are exactly the people dictators *want* to have kids.”
Some things are best left to experts
Incredibly, home circumcisions aren’t that uncommon, and kits to help you do it are sold online. In fact, in 2016, the NIH study called it an “emerging trend,” but those cases — brace yourself, fellas — typically involved grown men trying it on themselves — we’re not sure if that’s better or worse.
On whether children should be circumcised at all, Urologist Paul J. Kokorowski told Cedars-Sinai, “It’s important to know why it is that you would like to have a circumcision performed. There are cultural and religious considerations that are the reasons why some families feel it’s the right choice for them. For others, they weigh the factors and decide they would prefer not to circumcise.”
Children’s urologist Dr. Andrew Freedman added, “There are some minimal benefits and some minimal risks. There’s not enough benefit to say that you must do it, and there’s not enough risk to say you can never do it” — but seriously folks, no matter what you decide, don’t try it at home.