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The Pregnant Man
Or, how to create a media firestorm

But according to Thomas Beatie "it's a miracle".

How did it happen?

In a recent interview with talk show host Oprah Winfrey, Beatie explained that he been born female, but felt that something had gone strangely wrong. He should have been born a man.

It wasn't until he reached his 20's that Beatie finally decided to correct nature's mistake and began taking testosterone treatments and had breast surgery to flatten his chest.

Although now legally a man, he definitely did not want his female reproductive organs removed.

"I wanted to have a child one day," Beatie told Winfrey, as his wife Nancy sat by his side to explain how she inseminated him with a syringe using sperm purchased from a bank.

Five years ago, Thomas met and married Nancy, who has two grown daughters from a previous marriage. The decision for Thomas to carry the baby was made after Nancy was unable to conceive following a hysterectomy.

In an article written earlier by Beatie for The Advocate magazine he stated, "Who hires a surrogate if they are perfectly capable of carrying their own child? Wanting to have a biological child is neither a male nor female desire, but a human desire."

The couple are currently preparing as other expectant parents do : buying infant gear, picking out clothes and preparing a nursery for the homecoming.

During her interview, Winfrey concluded that Beatie's pregnancy set "a new definition of what diversity means for everybody," — this following comments by Beatie's obstetrician, Dr. Kimberly James who stated "this is a normal pregnancy" — vying for what may well be the most reported-upon understatement of the year.

update : Thomas Beatie gave birth to a baby girl by caesarian section on July 2, 2008. He also recently revealed in a Barbara Walters interview that he is pregnant again with his second child, due in June 2009.