?Breathe and push,? Eric Lohman encouraged his wife, Stephani, as she squeezed his hand and bore down. After seven hours of labour, they were both eager to meet their baby, a daughter they had already named Rosalie?Rosie for short?after an ultrasound indicated they were having a girl. A few more pushes and Rosie made her grand entrance, wriggling and wailing and perfectly pink. A nurse held up the alert newborn for her parents to see. Their baby girl appeared to be a baby boy.
?I told you ultrasounds could be wrong,? Stephani said to Eric, giving his arm a playful swat.
As Eric cut the umbilical cord, he got a closer look at his newborn. Rosie didn?t look like their son, Silas, had at birth. And once the cord was cut, the nurse didn?t place Rosie on Stephani?s chest, but whisked the baby to the examination area across the room. The atmosphere quickly went from celebratory to subdued. Stephani sensed something was wrong, but, numb from the epidural, she couldn?t sit up to see what was going on. ?Why aren?t they bringing me my baby"? she asked. A nurse said they were waiting for the paediatrician on call as there may be an irregularity. After what seemed like an eternity but was really only 10 minutes, the paediatrician approached Stephani?s bedside and sheepishly explained to her and Eric that sometimes when a baby is born, it?s hard to tell if it?s a boy or a girl.
Rosie was intersex.
What does it mean to be intersex"
Intersex, or differences of sexual development...