Do you remember Thomas Beatie, AKA "The Pregnant Man"? He was born as a woman, Tracy Lagondino, in Hawaii in 1974, but went on to have a state-authorized sex change before marrying his wife Nancy in 2003. Beatie, who kept his female sexual organs, underwent artificial insemination and became pregnant in 2007, which caused an international controversy (heightened, no doubt, by the eye-popping images of him posing for photos with a giant belly and beard).
Beatie had two more children quickly afterwards during a short window of not taking testosterone, but his marriage eventually fell apart. The couple filed for divorce last April, and Beatie was temporarily granted full custody of his children.
These days, he's with a new girlfriend. And apparently he's hoping to have a fourth child. Oh, and also? He's hoping that his girlfriend gets pregnant at the same time as he does.
I gotta say, I consider myself pretty open minded, but ... WOW.
Beatie's once-bucolic marriage seems like it went down in flames in a fairly dramatic fashion, with a judge delaying the divorce because he questioned whether or not the marriage was even valid (the judge felt that since both Beatie and his wife had female sex organs, their union was a same sex marriage, which isn't legal in Arizona). Beatie also got custody of the kids after convincing a court that his wife Nancy was a violent alcoholic who would attack him in front of the children.
Yeesh, right? Here's a short clip of Beatie talking about his divorce battle:
He must have remained optimistic about finding true love, because he has a new girlfriend, Amber Nicholas. He recently told U.K.'s Sunday Mirror that he wants a fourth child, and he's prepared to go through another pregnancy if need be:
Amber and I are totally smitten. We would love kids together and we are already discussing it. Being pregnant was the most incredible experience, but we want Amber to do it this time around. I think it would be amazing to experience pregnancy as the father. It is just about which one of us would be more successful at having a baby. It is even possible we could both be pregnant at the same time. Amber suggested we both try to get pregnant and whoever gets there first goes through with it.
Okay. I just ... I'm trying to wrap my head around this, but it's kind of tough. I mean, different strokes for different folks and all that, but jeez, he's already got three kids to consider. Doesn't it seem like they probably have enough to deal with, what with their dad having given birth to them (!) and their mom losing custody and their parents being in the midst of a horrific divorce fight and their dad having a new girlfriend and all?
It's not even so much the fact that he wants another kid, it's that he seems to have such a laissez-faire attitude about the whole process and how it will impact his family. La la la, we'll just both try to get pregnant and see what happens! Race you to the pee stick!
As for the, ah, mechanics of it all, Beatie apparently has a penis now, but still has a womb. In 2008, he explained how he felt about pregnancy:
Despite the fact that my belly is growing with a new life inside me, I am stable and confident being the man that I am. In a technical sense I see myself as my own surrogate, though my gender identity as male is constant.
Again, I can really only say "wow" to this whole story. At any rate, I hope that wherever his life goes from here, his kids are happy, and their mom gets healthy so she can be part of their lives again too.
What do you think about this? Do you think it's a good idea for Thomas Beatie to have more kids?
Image via YouTube
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Comments 16
The reality in this case: Thomas is one messed up woman.
I'm sorry for these kids to have to go through this.
IT had no business to have children to begin with since IT cant embrace the way god seen fit to make her. God don't make mistakes IT was born a WOMAN, you shouldn't have a choice as to if you are a man or woman god does that. IF she was to live her life as a woman that would be different but since she clearly trying to be a man then NO IT should NOT be bringing children in to this world. There is enough a kid has to deal with in the world we live in with out this type of crap from their mom??
Slow the hell down! He isn't even divorced and he's planning a life and children with someone he's "smitten" with? Not playing with a full set of Bocce balls.
I could care less whether Thomas Beatie wants to call himself a man, a woman, a cat, a monkey......his business, not mine, and he is welcome to be whatever he wants. It's called freedom and it's rampant in our country, which is great. But for the love of all that is holy, why in the hell would he have another baby with a new girlfriend he says he is "smitten" with???? Hello! That won't last, dude. Grow a brain and talk about this again in 5 years if you're still together and actually in love. I'm not worried about the kid being screwed up from having a dad who used to be a woman....i'm worried about the kid being screwed up from having idiots for parents. NEVER bring a child into this world because you are "smitten" with someone. Do it because you are in love and are ready for a child. A "surprise" pregnancy is one thing and can turn out quite well, but to plan a child with a new girlfriend is nuts. Way more nuts than a woman deciding to be a man.
I can't be the only one wondering this... if he/she has a penis now but also has a functioning womb that apparently still has the ability to produce a child, what does he/she do when its that "time of the month"?