Personal and professional challenges of building a family as a same sex male couple

TRIGGER WARNING: This episode deals with discussions of in/fertility and/or baby loss.

How well understood are less traditional routes to parenthood by employers?

Do HR directors appreciate the challenges of, for example, surrogacy or adoption? And do they know that the needs and rights of those on alternative routes will vary?

While there are differences, there are also things that are common to all of those on a in/fertility journey and other ways to build a family.

In this episode, we’re joined by Mike and Wes, who share their experience as a same-sex married couple becoming parents through surrogacy.

It wasn’t easy, especially for Mike who was working in a “toxic masculine” environment where his need for time off to spend with his new baby became a career barrier.
Their experience led to the creation of a non-profit called My Surrogacy Journey.

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GUEST BIOS:
Michael Johnson-Ellis He | Him | His
Co-Founder & Co-CEO, The Modern Family Show and My Surrogacy Journey®
Michael is married to Wes and Dad to Talulah born in 2016 and Duke born in 2019.
Michael is an active blogger and fertility campaigner via the successful social media channel TwoDadsUK. Michael has been involved in driving UK legislative and policy changes along with Wes.
Mike was Awarded The Surrogacy Professional of The Year Award in 2019 due to his services to the UK Surrogacy community and has a passion and drive to force change within the Surrogacy community and parenting communities.

Wes Johnson-Ellis He | Him | His
Co-Founder & Co-CEO, The Modern Family Show and My Surrogacy Journey®
Wes has been married to Michael since 2012 and he has an 18-year-old daughter from a previous straight marriage.
Wes has an events background and has not only worked on London 2012 and other high-profile sporting events, he has also worked for Premiership Football clubs overseeing their Catering and Hospitality offering, ensuring smooth and effective delivery.
Wes also manages his street food business when he’s finding the spare time to juggle parenting, being a husband and walking their Frenchie, named Bug.
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CONNECT WITH US
You can engage with the hosts and the growing In/Fertility in the City community by:
-emailing us: info@infertilityinthecity.com
-following us on:
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/infertilityinthecity
Instagram: https://instagram.com/infertilityinthecity
Twitter: https://twitter.com/InFertilityCity
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OUR SPONSOR
Finally, thanks to Fertifa, the UK’s leading reproductive healthcare benefits provider, for sponsoring this season of the podcast. You can find out more about Fertifa here: https://www.fertifa.com You can also contact them direct here: enquiries@fertifa.com