People mistake us for twins or mother and daughter – that’s why it’s quite difficult for us

Sisters or ladies?

A married couple is proud to be expecting their first child together, but people still keep mistaking them for twins – which is why they’re still fighting for LGBTQ+ recognition.

Whitney, 37, and Megan Bacon-Evans, 38, first connected on MySpace as teenagers in 2006. They chatted online for two years before they were finally able to meet in person when Whitney, originally from Kentucky, studied abroad in London.

“As soon as we locked eyes, I knew it was her,” Megan told Jam Press.

They officially became a couple two weeks later and have been ever since. But that hasn’t stopped people from questioning their relationship.

“We are often mistaken for sisters, twins and worst of all – mother and daughter,” said Whitney. “We hear it all the time, from in person to online.

“We think people are naturally curious because they feel a deep connection between us and want to know the connection.”

But she shared that most people assume they are anything but a couple.

“We kindly correct them and say we’re married and have been together for 16 years,” Whitney said. “We hope to correct what we can educate about lesbian couples and never assume.”

She added that it is “quite difficult” to inform people that the person they believe is her sister or mother is actually her wife, but the couple have been through too much together to not openly share their love.

After officially becoming a couple in 2008, the lovebirds spent four years apart until Whitney moved to the UK in 2012 – and the couple celebrated by entering into a civil partnership, as same-sex marriage was not yet legal.

In 2017, they “upgraded” their marriage in the US and decided to start trying to have a child in 2020.

“We were excited to finally start our journey of becoming two moms, but we also didn’t really know what that would entail, due to the huge lack of representation,” Megan said.

“There is a huge lack of information about how LGBTQ+ couples start their family. We didn’t know where to start on our baby journey and neither did we [doctor].â€

After two years of research and preparation, the women began their intrauterine insemination (IUI) journey and were thrilled to learn that Megan was pregnant on the first round.

But their joy did not last.

“Unfortunately it turned out to be a chemical pregnancy and a few weeks later, Megan was unfortunately no longer pregnant,” Whitney said.

The women went through two more shocking, unsuccessful rounds before moving on to IVF. The second IVF round was successful.

“We’re both so excited,” Whitney exclaimed. “It is the most magical feeling to know that we will be able to meet our baby in May.

“We can’t wait to be mummies and expand our family. We’ve just found out we’re having a baby girl which is so exciting!

Although their journey has been successful, they are not done fighting to make it easier.

“During our baby journey, we were shocked to discover the barriers and discrimination in place that prevent same-sex female couples from having a family,” Megan said, adding that these issues affect anyone with a womb.

The UK-based couple have spent around $50,000 throughout their pregnancy journey and don’t want others to face the “unfair financial burden” – coined the “gay tax” – that many in the LGBTQ+ community and single women face welcome. a child.

That’s why they spoke about these issues in the UK Parliament for an LGBT+ Commission inquiry report last year.

In 2022, the UK government announced that it planned to remove additional barriers to publicly funded healthcare system fertility treatments for female same-sex couples as part of its Women’s Healthcare Strategy, but still they haven’t finished it.