Trans-identified biological woman claims to be no 'less of a man' despite giving birth, breastfeeding

A biological female who identifies as a man and who gave birth and is breastfeeding a child has hit back at critics who suggest such actions are not congruent with “living as a man” and question the safety of nursing after taking hormones.

TikTok celebrity Tanius Posey, 31, began medically transitioning six years ago, and in 2021 was surprised by a positive pregnancy test, reports the Daily Mail. After son Za’nius was born in early 2022, Tanius began sharing the unusual parenting journey on TikTok, amassing almost 1 million followers.

Posey has received enormous support from followers, but also significant backlash, with some suggesting the young parent “doesn’t belong on this planet,” and others saying that the cross-sex hormones will harm the baby.

Women who identify as men and then go on to have children are sometimes called “seahorse dads,” in reference to the fact that male seahorses carry their babies. The women who present as male, however, are not male, and male humans do not carry the young of the species.

Posey addressed the criticism in a recent interview with Truly, in which the trans-identified parent encourages other “seahorse dads” to “utilize what they’ve got” without feeling shame. 

"We've got the parts, it does not make us any less of a man. We are still a man, regardless of how society feels about us. Utilize the parts you got," said Posey.

Posey came to identify as a man after meeting another trans-identified female at work, further strengthening the social contagion hypothesis denied by so many trans activists.

“I didn't really know anything about transitioning until I came across a co-worker, the first trans individual,” recalls Posey who always knew “something was off,” but didn’t know exactly what it was until that first encounter with a trans-identified female colleague.

“Just so much of him clicked, so I mean, we communicated for quite some time…and then I looked into it myself, and then just went from there. I finally found myself.”

Posey wasn’t aware of the pregnancy for the first three months, meaning that throughout the entire crucial first trimester, the baby was exposed to high doses of testosterone. It is not yet known what effect these hormones have on fetal development, nor is there any long-term data to say that taking testosterone while breastfeeding is safe for the baby. Posey, however, has not resumed taking testosterone since giving birth.

The young trans influencer began sharing the pregnancy and breastfeeding journey as a way to normalize transgender females gestating and nourishing their children while on an experimental medical pathway involving powerful hormonal intervention.

Much of the backlash to the TikTok star’s content has come from within the transgender community, with trans people suggesting Posey is “not trans enough” and is “making the rest of [the trans community] look bad.”