Transition to parenthood of lesbian parents: key processes and clinical implications

The transition to parenthood is a key process for understanding the development of family relationships in a systemic perspective. This process has been studied mostly in heterosexual families but very few studies focus on families with same-sex families. This exploratory study analyzes the key passages of the transition from 17 lesbian headed families through a quantitative analysis of socio-demographic data, information about the coming-out, pair formation, project of the child, the child's arrival, as well as social and cultural pressures towards family and stressors. The main results show that the decision making to become parents is generally harmonious (70%) between the members of the couple, and only a few had substantial conflicts (17,1%). Moreover, the motivation to become parents seems to be stronger for the mother who carried the child (57, 1%)than for the social mother. The majority of the lesbian mothers reported no medical homophobia (64,3%) Regarding the caregiving tasks, they seem to be equally shared between social and biological mothers. In regards to the child, almost 70% are aware of their parents’ sexual orientation (as only 5.7% are not fully aware). Finally, no changes in the quality of relationship with the family of origin have been found after the birth of the baby. Clinical implications of these results will be discussed.