The Root of All Problems

In 1965, David Reimer was born as Bruce Peter Reimer to teenage couple Janet and Ron Reimer. He was the eldest of twins, and his brother was named Brian Henry Reimer. The boys were healthy until they were eight months old when they were diagnosed with phimosis, which prevented the foreskin from retracting, thus causing difficulty in urinating.

The only solution was to get the twins circumcised, but everything did not go as planned. The operating doctor used the unconventional method of electrocauterization instead of using a blade. The process went awry because David’s genitals were burned beyond surgical repair. The younger twin was not subjected to the procedure, and his phimosis healed naturally later.