Woman Fends Off ‘Rude’ Critics Who Shamed Her Over Large Pregnant Belly

May 03, 2023 by apost team

When Eliana Vargas Rodriguez was pregnant with her second child, she was stunned by the amount of attention – not necessarily positive – she received about her baby bump appearing larger than average. 

However, Rodriguez was determined not to let the body shamers get to her, and on June 4, 2022, she shared a video of herself flaunting her exposed baby bump while quoting some of the nasty comments she had received, including: “You look like you’re having twins,” “You are huge” and “Have you checked if there’s another baby in there?”

Many flooded the comments to praise Rodriguez and assure her there was absolutely nothing wrong with her body.

“As long as you and your beautiful baby are healthy don't give a second thought to what anyone says,” one user commented, while another wrote, “I'm so amazed by how totally awesome our bodies are! 😍”

Rodriguez welcomed her son a few days after sharing the video, and both mother and child were deemed healthy. She told Today her newborn son measured 20.5 inches while her first child, Sofia, had been 19.5 inches.

“I carried big during my pregnancies; both my children weighed 8.3 pounds at birth,” Rodriguez added.

She told the outlet she started showing at two months and “wondered why my belly was bigger than other women.” Rodriguez was told by her doctors that “it was normal because I am only 4'11 and have a shorter torso.”

On how she usually responded to the comments, Rodriguez said, “I was never rude back. I’d answer, ‘Yes, I am huge and it’s hard.’”

Rodriguez told The Independent it was “mind blowing how rude people can be,” which led her to film the video. 

“I was simply sharing the questions and comments I got on a daily basis throughout my pregnancy. It didn’t matter if I was at a store or on social media, so I decided to make a video to add a little humor. However, some of the comments I received are much worse than the ones I pointed out,” she added.

Rodriguez also shared that, during her pregnancy, she carried a lot of amniotic fluid, which contributed to the larger appearance of her baby bump. While too much of the liquid that protects the fetus in the amniotic sac can be the result of a serious condition called polyhydramnios, the mom was relieved to find out from her doctors that this was not the case for her.

“They did check the amount of fluids and checked the baby’s size,” she told Today.

She said while she was “not affected by any of the negative comments” she could “only imagine how destructive this can be to a woman who isn’t in the best mindset or is experiencing depression. People should have love and compassion towards pregnant women. It’s already hard to go through so many physical changes that you literally cannot control, not to mention emotional changes too,” she said.

In a clip posted to her Instagram in April 2023, Rodriguez flaunted her bare belly again for her third pregnancy, alongside comparisons to her belly while she was pregnant with her first two kids. She wrote in the caption:

“I actually think I’m smaller this time compared to my second one🙌🤔🤷‍♀️ One thing for sure is I have ALWAYS carried BIG. … I love my babybumps, I’ve embraced them all! 🥳

apost.com

What do you think of Eliana Vargas Rodriguez’s response to her critics? If you liked this story, be sure to pass this along to friends and family, too.