Pregnancy as a Trans Dad and Gender Neutral Parenting with Freddy McConnell

Doing It! with Hannah Witton

Global Media & Entertainment

Health & Fitness, Relationships, Sexuality, Society & Culture

4.8 • 651 Ratings

🗓️ 6 April 2022

⏱️ 56 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this episode, Hannah is joined by Freddy McConnell, a writer and journalist who recently became a solo dad as a trans man. Freddy talks all about what the experience of being pregnant and giving birth was like for him as a trans man in the UK, as well as the complexities of coming off testosterone to get pregnant and the challenge of body dysmorphia throughout the whole process. Freddy discusses how we need correct education and professional advice to be given to trans people about fertility, and his experience of health care professionals in general throughout his pregnancies. Finally, Hannah and Freddy chat about Freddy’s choice to become a solo parent, gender neutral parenting, and how pregnancy spaces can be become more LGBTQ+ inclusive.

CW: experiences of transphobia and misgendering

MORE ABOUT FREDDY MCCONNELL
Freddy McConnell is a writer and journalist who began his career at The Guardian in London and Sydney.

He became a solo dad via donor conception in 2018 and again in 2022. Freddy shared his first experience of pregnancy as a transgender man in the BIFA-nominated documentary *[Seahorse](https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/vimeo.com/ondemand/seahorsefilm__;!!KEc8uF_xo8-al5zF!H8776FZAWLucW1qPggi-YSyHs17GbwkGEpMbWplxu92f394QY_Je3AhKcPFlky1P$)*. Wanting to tell more stories of queer parenthood, he then created the BBC podcast, *[Pride & Joy](https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p08ckm7w__;!!KEc8uF_xo8-al5zF!H8776FZAWLucW1qPggi-YSyHs17GbwkGEpMbWplxu92f394QY_Je3AhKcMbKIaAi$)*. His first picture book, *Little Seahorse and the Big Question*, will be published by Puffin in July 2022.

Freddy is also an advocate for LGBTQ+ family equality. His fight to be recognised as his children's father or parent on their birth certificates is waiting to be heard by the European Court of Human Rights.

- Twitter: https://twitter.com/freddymcconnell
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/freddy.mcconnell/
- Seahorse film: https://seahorsefilm.com/watch

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi everyone, welcome back to Doing It, the Sex and Relationships podcast where sex has
0:10.9	never been so nerdy. With me, your host, Hannah Whitten. I am super excited to tell you about
0:17.2	my guest this week, the incredible Freddie McConnell. Freddy is a writer and journalist
0:23.0	and is also a trans man who became a solo dad via donor conception giving birth in 2018 and more
0:29.6	recently again this year in 2022. Freddie shared his first experience of pregnancy as a transgender man
0:36.0	in the Biffa-nominated documentary,
0:38.1	Seahorse. Freddie is also the host of the podcast Pride and Joy, which he started because
0:43.1	he wanted to tell more stories of queer parenthood. He's also an advocate for LGBTIQ Plus family equality,
0:50.2	and his fight to be recognised as his children's father or parent on their birth certificates
0:54.7	is waiting to be heard by the European Court of Human Rights.
0:58.9	I really wanted to have Freddie on the show to talk all about becoming a seahorse dad
1:03.6	and his choice to become a solo parent.
1:07.1	This really was such an interesting conversation.
1:10.0	Freddie told me all about what the experience of being pregnant and giving birth was like for him as a trans man in the UK.
1:15.6	He spoke about the complexities of coming off testosterone to get pregnant and the challenge of body dysphoria through the whole process.
1:22.6	Freddie also spoke about the fact that when he was first medically transitioning, he had been told he would no longer be able to conceive and how we need actually correct education and professional advice to be given to trans people about fertility.
1:36.3	Freddie also talked about his experience of healthcare professionals in general throughout his pregnancies and whilst he experienced transphobia and misgendering during his first pregnancy,
1:46.0	he also experienced joyful, inclusive and affirming treatment by his local clinic during his second one.
1:52.0	He talked about how pregnancy spaces can become more LGBTQ plus inclusive and why maternity wards should come up with a different name.
2:00.0	We chatted about Freddie's choice to become a solo parent and how he loves it
2:04.2	because he doesn't have to take another adult's perspective into consideration
2:07.9	when choosing how to parent or where to live.
	...

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