When I first met my husband, he earned a good 50% more than me.

This didn’t seem to be an unusual circumstance, as far as gender pay imbalances go: it had certainly been the pattern in all of my prior relationships, and in those of my heterosexual female friends around me. The situation only got worse when I fell pregnant and dropped onto maternity pay. Returning to work, even part time, meant paying for childcare: an epic impact crater in the dust of my paltry salary. I hadn’t contributed much financially to begin with, but after our daughter was born, I began to feel like a drain.

Then three years ago, all of that changed.

The hobby of Instagram and photography that I’d been exploring during maternity leave expanded into an entire side hustle alongside my NHS job. I was teaching classes, being asked to speak at workshops and conventions across Europe and being paid decent money to consult on social media for businesses. Gradually the revenue I was making from my “hobby” began to eclipse what I was earning in the NHS, until quitting my day job seemed the most logical – and exciting – choice.