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}}</ref> [[Foreskinned]] men derive comfort from their [[foreskin]] that is not available to [[circumcised]] men.<ref name="prescott1975">{{REFjournal |last=Prescott |init=JW |author-link=James W. Prescott |url=http://www.violence.de/prescott/bulletin/article.html |title=Body Pleasure and the Origins of Violence |journal=Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists |date=1975-11 |volume= |issue= |pages=10-20 |accessdate=2022-11-05}}</ref>

There was little awareness of emotional and/or psychological issues when child [[circumcision]] was being promoted in the late 19th century and early 20th century. For example, [[Douglas Gairdner]] (1949) made no mention at all of [[pain]], [[trauma]] , behavior changes, or psychological issues in his landmark 1949 paper.<ref name="fate1949">{{GairdnerDM 1949}}</ref>

[[Intact America ]] (2023) reported that [[intact]] males were shamed.<ref>{{REFweb

Luther, Kraybill & Potter (1976) tested cortisol and cortisone in the blood of newborn infants before and after [[circumcision]]. Dramatic increases in cortisol and a lesser increase in cortisone was recorded.<ref name="luther1976">{{REFjournal

Rawlins, Miller & Engel (1980) investigated the blood oxygen content after [https://www.thefreedictionary.com/unanesthetized unanesthetized] non-therapeutic [[circumcision]]. They reported that blood oxygen content decreased during non-therapeutic neonatal circumcision, although it returned to baseline or above later.<ref name="rawlins-miller-engel1980">{{REFjournal

|title=Circumcision I: effects Effects upon newborn behavior

Gunnar et al. (1984) tested the effects of a pacifier during [[circumcision]]. They reported:

Porter et al. (1986) recorded the [[pain ]] cries of boys undergoing [[circumcision]]. They reported that "Subjective judgments and objective quantitative data converge to demonstrate that infants' cries are perceived as varying and objectively, do systematically vary with respect to the the intensity of the painful stimuli."<ref name="porter1986">{{REFjournal

Porter et al. (1988) recorded the cries of boys undergoing non-therapeutic child [[circumcision]]. They found that the pitch of the cries increased as stress ([[euphemism]] for [[pain]]) increases.<ref name="porter1988">{{REFjournal

The research reported in this section clearly establish the the distress shown by male infants during unanesthetized circumcision does not come from being restrained, that infants feel extreme [[pain]], that sucking on a pacifier does not reduce pain, although it may reduce crying, and that neonatal non-therapeutic [[circumcision]] is traumatic for the child.

Male circumcision (called ''[[tuli]]'') is part of the culture of the Philippine Islands. Boys usually are not neonatally circumcised. Instead, [[Tuli| circumcision]] is done when they are somewhat older. Some are medically circumcised while others are [[circumcised]] in a traditional manner. Ramos & Boyle (2001) studied the psychological effects of [[circumcision]] on Philippine boys. They reported that sixty-nine percent of traditionally circumcised boys and fifty-one percent of medically circumcised boys met the criteria for a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder ([[PTSD]]).<ref name="ramos-boyle2001">{{REFbook

Rhinehart (1999) was a practicing psychiatrist who had patients with later life problems stemming from their neonatal [[circumcision]]. He listed some possibilities:

[[Foreskinned]] men [[Foreskin play| derive "body pleasure", comfort , and satisfaction]] from their [[foreskin]] that is not available to [[circumcised]] men.<ref name="prescott1975" /> <ref>{{REFweb |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/FriendsOfTheFrenulum/comments/1ma5zqc/the_data_is_in_the_silence_is_broken_a_first_look/ |title=The Data is In. The Silence is Broken. A First Look at Our Survey's Staggering Results. |last=Intactivist |first=Accidental |init= |author-link= |publisher=REDDIT |date=2025-07-26 |accessdate=2025-07-27}}</ref> <ref>{{REFweb |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/penisquestion/comments/1md58l6/touching_your_penis/ |title=Touching Your Penis |last=Anonymous |first= |init= |publisher=REDDIT |date=2025-07-30 |accessdate=2025-08-23}}</ref> <ref>{{REFweb |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/uncircumcised_talk/comments/1n0cnh2/how_do_you_play_with_your_foreskin_not_sexually/ |title=How do you play with your foreskin? Not sexually, just casually |last=Anonymous |first= |init= |author-link= |publisher=REDDIT |date=2026-08-25 |accessdate=2025-08-26}} </ref> [[Intact America]] (2024) reported that [[circumcised]] men have feelings of loss, grief, and anger toward their family.<ref name="kristel2024-12-22">{{REFweb |url=https://intactamerica.org/emotional-weight-of-circumcision/ |title=The Emotional Weight of Circumcision: Beyond the Physical Cut |last=Alissa |first=Kristel |init= |author-link= |publisher=Intact America |date=2024-12-22 |accessdate=2024-12-23}}</ref>

Most male doctors in the [[United States ]] are men who were [[circumcised]] as infants. Consequently, despite being medical doctors , they have no personal knowledge of or appreciation for the human [[foreskin]]. These male doctors share the [[trauma]] and attitudes of other [[circumcised]] men and are just as likely to want to repeat the [[trauma]]. [[Eleanor LeBourdais| LeBourdais]] (1995) pointed out that the "age of the attending physician, sex and circumcision status" were important factors in determining the likelihood of a baby boy being [[circumcised]].<ref>{{REFjournal

After the medical community belatedly learned that infants actually feel [[pain]], <ref name="anand1987">{{REFjournal |last=Anand |init=KJS |author-link=Kanwaljeet J. Singh Anand |last2=Hickey |init2=PR |author2-link= |etal=no |title=Pain and its effects in the human neonate and fetus |journal=N Engl J Med |location= |date=1987-11-19 |volume=317 |issue=21 |pages=1321-9 |url=http://www.cirp.org/library/pain/anand/ |archived= |quote= |pubmedID=3317037 |pubmedCID= |DOI=10.1056/NEJM198711193172105 |accessdate=2025-09-23}}</ref> Howard, Howard, & Weitzman (1994) tested the use of acetaminophen (paracetamol) for post-surgical pain following neonatal non-therapeutic circumcision.<ref name="howard1994">{{REFjournal

|url=https://www.i2researchhubcirp.org/articleslibrary/acetaminophen-analgesia-in-neonatal-circumcisionpain/howard/ |archived=

|quote=This study confirms that circumcision of the newborn causes severe and persistent pain. Acetaminophen was not found to ameliorate either the intraoperative or the immediate postoperative pain of circumcision, although it seems that it may provide some benefit after the immediate postoperative period.

The authors reported their "analysis shows differences between early [[circumcised]] and non-circumcised men in psychological measures of socio-affectivity and provides initial support for the hypothesis that this alteration stems from the most crucial neurodevelopmentally plastic period of an individual's life. " They called for "replication of the current study with a larger sample size and better ability to control for socioeconomic variables."<ref name="miani2020" /> {{SEEALSO}}* [[Adamant father syndrome]]* [[Association of male circumcision with homosexuality]]* [[Circumcision coma]]* [[Circumcision and violence]]* [[Foreskin_restoration#Emotional.2C_psychological.2C_and_psychiatric_benefits| Emotional, psychological, and psychiatric benefits]]* [[Pain]]* [[Psychosexual Effects of Circumcision]]* [[Psychiatrist Discusses the Lasting Trauma of Circumcision]]* [[Post-traumatic stress disorder]]* [[Suicide]]* [[Trauma]] == Videos == === Voices of those affected De drabbades röst ===The following poignant video expresses the emotional pain that many men who were [[circumcised]] in infancy feel. There is a short {{NSFW}} section: