March 29, 2024

When transgender men have children

Transgender studies is a field which comes up with many surprises.

Transgender studies is a field which comes up with many surprises. An article in this month’s issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology says that since most transgender men desire to have children, more attention should be paid to those who actually bear their own.

A few years ago, such cases of “pregnant men” were rare enough for Thomas Beatie to appear on Oprah Winfrey (who said that he/she was “a new definition of what diversity means for everybody”). Now, it seems, it is going mainstream. Beatie went on to have three children, even though he and his wife have filed for divorce. 

Researchers found that in a small sample of 41 transgender men who became pregnant, the mean age was 28 and 80% had used their own eggs. A significant number suffered from post-natal depression. Half of the transgender men who had not transitioned with the help of testosterone had an unplanned pregnancy and one-fourth of the transgender men who had used testosterone had an unplanned pregnancy. The authors concluded that there is “a potential unmet need for contraceptive services for transgender men”. 

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