A trans woman came out to her wife after 10 years and 2 kids. She turned around and said ‘thats OK – I think I’m gay’
Jenni Barrett came out as gay after her wife came out as trans (Instagram)
A couple from Phoenix, Arizona, have opened up about the incredible moment they came out to each other – one as trans and one as gay.
Jenni and Sarah Barrett were married for more than a decade when Sarah found the courage to tell her wife that she was a trans woman.
In 2016, Sarah told her wife: “I really need to talk to you – I think I’m trans,” according to Wales Online.
Jenni wasn’t concerned at all about this admission. In fact, it came of something of a relief, as she herself had been coming to terms with the fact that she was gay.
“I’d come to realise why I’d always been so drawn to her, it was because of who she was on the inside – a woman – and not her shell,” Jenni said.
Jenni and Sarah married in 2005 and went on to have two sons, Morgan and Toby.
Shortly after Toby’s birth, Jenni started to notice that Sarah was wearing more and more women’s clothes while at home.
“Sarah would come home with a pair of silk pyjamas, clearly for women, and ask if it was weird if she wore them,” Jenni said.
“She started buying a lot of clothes like that, which were on the edge of what is seen as male or female.
“She would wear a nightie to bed and on date nights she’d be wearing countless layers of clothes with a bra underneath, so no one could see.”
Jenni noticed the changes, but decided not to say anything.
Sarah came out as trans in 2016 following a journey towards self-acceptance.
Sarah finally opened up about her gender identity after they began to suspect that their son was gay.
“As he started secondary school, in 2016, Sarah and I discussed how we wanted him to be comfortable enough to come out as gay and be his true, authentic self.
“That’s what drove Sarah to hold up a mirror to herself and come out as trans.”
The couple quickly decided to stay together and told their sons about Sarah’s transition together.
Now, their children call Sarah “Eema”, which is the Hebrew for “mother”, as they are Jewish.
The happy couple want others to know that it is more than possible for a relationship to continue after one person has transitioned.
“People never believe it, but I can honestly say that I never felt any betrayal or sense of being lied to,” Jenni said.
