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

Doing It! with Hannah Witton

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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