Kaye,

We are talking about our  daughters, not ourselfs here.  They are the one's who will 'live' with any extra surgeries that they needed because they had one to early.  I have never met one girl who had success---if they are out there, they certainly are not campaigning 'for'surgeries that's for sure.  Our daughters are the one's that will be subject to unnecessary and intimate physical exams through out childhood.  The minute we take the path and decide to interfere with their external genitalia (which is all we are talking about here) is the minute that our daughter's have these trials and tribulations. Things don't just stop with the surgeries.  From what I understand, girls have to be 'stretched."  This takes time, and why do baby girls need this?  To 'look' right now?    Why?  Who will be looking at her genitals?  We do when they are baby's for 3 yrs or so several times daily to change diapers, but from age four, who will be paying attention?  The beauty of being a little girl is you discreetly visit the loo.  No one needs to know.  Good counselling and toilet training is all that is needed.  Can you remember even worrying what your genitals looked like at the age of 6?  I cannot even remember worrying about their appearance until I had my first boyfriend---and that shouldn't be happening until after 16 yrs old anyway!   

If time is not spent dwelling upon a child's genitals as a problem until later, then they are not going to know any different until they are old enough to realise and then they are old enough to be told in a way that they can understand with a counsellor present and 'learn' the real reason why they look a little different and that it is just temporary until the time comes for the doctor to adjust things for them.

JH