This Is Work Related
“If this doesn’t look like a spreadsheet…”
March 27, 2008 at 10:33 am
filed under Main Street
http://advocate.com/issue_story.asp?id=52664
Labor of Love
Is society ready for this pregnant husband?
By Thomas Beatie
From The Advocate April 8, 2008
To our neighbors, my wife, Nancy, and I don’t appear in the least unusual. To those in the quiet Oregon community where we live, we are viewed just as we are -- a happy couple deeply in love. Our desire to work hard, buy our first home, and start a family was nothing out of the ordinary. That is, until we decided that I would carry our child.
I am transgender, legally male, and legally married to Nancy. Unlike those in same-sex marriages, domestic partnerships, or civil unions, Nancy and I are afforded the more than 1,100 federal rights of marriage. Sterilization is not a requirement for sex reassignment, so I decided to have chest reconstruction and testosterone therapy but kept my reproductive rights. Wanting to have a biological child is neither a male nor female desire, but a human desire.
Ten years ago, when Nancy and I became a couple, the idea of us having a child was more dream than plan. I always wanted to have children. However, due to severe endometriosis 20 years ago, Nancy had to undergo a hysterectomy and is unable to carry a child. But after the success of our custom screen-printing business and a move from Hawaii to the Pacific Northwest two years ago, the timing finally seemed right. I stopped taking my bimonthly testosterone injections. It had been roughly eight years since I had my last menstrual cycle, so this wasn’t a decision that I took lightly. My body regulated itself after about four months, and I didn’t have to take any exogenous estrogen, progesterone, or fertility drugs to aid my pregnancy.
Our situation sparks legal, political, and social unknowns. We have only begun experiencing opposition from people who are upset by our situation. Doctors have discriminated against us, turning us away due to their religious beliefs. Health care professionals have refused to call me by a male pronoun or recognize Nancy as my wife. Receptionists have laughed at us. Friends and family have been unsupportive; most of Nancy’s family doesn’t even know I’m transgender.
This whole process, from trying to get pregnant to being pregnant, has been a challenge for us. The first doctor we approached was a reproductive endocrinologist. He was shocked by our situation and told me to shave my facial hair. After a $300 consultation, he reluctantly performed my initial checkups. He then required us to see the clinic’s psychologist to see if we were fit to bring a child into this world and consulted with the ethics board of his hospital. A few months and a couple thousand dollars later, he told us that he would no longer treat us, saying he and his staff felt uncomfortable working with “someone like me.”
In total, nine different doctors have been involved. This is why it took over one year to get access to a cryogenic sperm bank to purchase anonymous donor vials, and why Nancy and I eventually resorted to home insemination.
thoughts?
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willyjsimmons
Good for them.
cjp
Man... I like to think im open about alot of things. Im cool with gays, transgenders an all of the above having kids... Its just a lil hard to understand... but different strokes for different folks.
willyjsimmons
http://wordpress.org/development/2008/03/wordpress-25-rc2/
Video of what the new wordpress looks like.
SWANK!!!!
persia
i dont see why people are flipping out so much.. i mean yeah, it looks a little off, but its not thier bodies.... my concern is if you've been reassigned....c-section of course, but what if lol..what if lol...i cant even say it man! lol
cjp
but what if lol..what if lol…i cant even say it man! lol
----------------------------------------------------
You dont have too... that shit would hurt like hell
cec
but what if lol..what if lol…i cant even say it man! lol
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That just sent chills up my spine
Banga!
Being Pussy Whipped was just taken to a whole new Level!!!!!!!