- "My Pregnant Husband" is a new TLC special that follows two
transgender men as they experiencepregnancy for the first time. - The show touches on their relationships with their partners, doctors visits,
parenting styles, and the stigmas transgender people face. - It also highlights how being Black and transgender can contribute to stress and trauma.
Pregnancy is challenging for everyone, but uniquely so for transgender men who were assigned female at birth.
For Myles, a trans man, and his wife Precious, a trans woman, the experience was all the more complex being African American, confronting racism and transphobia as they embarked on starting a family.
Their journey is part of TLC's new special "My Pregnant Husband," which follows two transgender men and their spouses as they experience pregnancy and giving birth to their first children.
The hour-long episode, which airs tomorrow at 10 pm ET, features two couples: Myles and Precious, and Ari and his wife Caitlin, a cisgender woman.
Viewers see both couples going to doctor's appointments, shopping for baby supplies, and having difficult discussions about how they'll raise their soon-to-be children.
The show highlights both the joys of pregnancy and being a proud transgender person, and the stigmatization and fear that transgender folks continue to endure, including when that stigma intersects with racism.
Myles was arrested at a store when police assumed his pregnant belly was stolen goods
In many ways, Ari, who lives in Seattle, and Myles, who lives in Chicago, had similar experiences being pregnant transgender men. They had conversations with their partners about how excited they were to carry their future children, how others would view their budding families, and how to best support each other throughout the pregnancies.
But the show also highlighted how race can impact a person's pregnancy experience.
While filming, Myles explained that he was nervous about how strangers would perceive him in public during the pregnancy, since he'd already experienced racism before becoming pregnant. For that reason, he said he always tried to have his wife Precious accompany him on errands.
But one day, he went to the store by himself while pregnant, and police arrested him.
"I got arrested because they thought my bump was clothes I had hid," Myles said in the special.
The experience was traumatizing, but Precious told Insider she hopes viewers use the moment as a conversation-starter.
"I feel that it's important that we see various depictions of trans identity. Obviously we're dealing with a national epidemic of violence, and we see that through Miles' experience with police brutality," Precious said. "I do hope that people engage in a conversation around safety and harms that people of color experience navigating society on a daily basis."
Myles told Insider that having Precious by his side helped him get through the difficult moments in his pregnancy, especially at the doctor's office.
"She would just grab my hand because she knew the type of anxiety I was feeling because, you know, the negative experiences that trans people often experience when they're accessing care," Myles aid. "So for me, she's been the perfect partner because he gets every part of me because she's experienced some of the same things that I have."
Each couple took a different parenting approach
Both couples touched on how they planned to raise their children too, and their styles varied.
Ari and Caitlin opted for a gender-neutral parenting style and didn't reveal the gender or name of their child to viewers.
Myles and Precious, on the other hand, said they were having a baby girl named Zayne. At first, Myles pushed for a more gender-neutral parenting style, but Precious said she would raise their daughter in an accepting manner.
"I'm going to raise her with the understanding that if she wants to be a prince, that's fine," Precious said in the special.
Their differing styles illustrate there's no one way to raise a child, or to be a transgender person.
"Our participation in the series ... it's about celebrating trans bodies and celebrating our trans selves. And I believe that we are one piece of representation," Precious told Insider. "We are two Black American people love each other, and we just wanted to add another narrative."
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