How dare she? How very dare Emily Atack, pregnant with her first child, touch her baby bump?
And out in the public, of all places. Where people can see! Does she not know that it isn’t allowed?
Yes, OK, you got me. I’m being sarcastic – but other people clearly weren’t.
The 34-year-old actress has been keeping her fans updated on her pregnancy via social media and a couple of them have picked up on the fact that she is often cradling her bump in pictures.
‘How heavy is that bump? Never seen a picture with you (sic) hand off it,’ said one person.
While another – even ruder – person commented, ‘Looks terrible! And I really hate that “cradling of the baby bump”. So affected; it screams “look at me, I’m pregnant, aren’t I superior to you”. Ugh!’
Meghan Markle faced similar criticism when she was pregnant. ‘If I see one more photo of Meghan Markle cradling that bump I am going to vomit,’ one person tweeted, while another felt the need to remind her that her bump is ‘not going to fall off’.
Now, let me get one thing straight – and I’m going to say this slowly.
Emily Atack’s body is her own. As is Meghan Markle’s, and indeed, every other woman’s.
She can dress it how she likes, take it where she likes and touch it as she likes. As long as she’s not being wildly inappropriate in public, it is her business and no-one else’s.
Why is that, in the year 2024, so difficult for people to comprehend?
Secondly, are we really mum-shaming people before they’re even mums? It’s bad enough when we already have children, but come on, when women are pregnant? That’s what we’re doing now? Cripes, it’s a depressing world we live in.
There is nothing more natural than a woman who is carrying a child to touch their bump. Like, literally nothing.
I did it all of the time when I was pregnant with both of my children. I was barely conscious of it. My hand would just automatically gravitate to my swollen stomach, whether I was watching TV on the sofa or making dinner in the kitchen or lying in bed, trying to find a comfortable position to sleep in.
And yes, I would do it in public too, while I was walking to work or sitting on the train or waiting in the queue at the shops.
It wasn’t for attention, or to gloat about my ability to conceive – and it certainly wasn’t to rub it in anyone’s face who were trying to have a baby. To be honest, I didn’t think anyone would a) notice or b) care.
It was instinctive, a completely natural act.
Just because I hadn’t given birth to my children didn’t mean that I felt any less loving or caring towards them. For the moment that positive sign appeared on my pregnancy test, I was fully aware that I had a baby inside of me.
And, after my first 12-week scan with my son Theo, when I fully allowed myself to believe I was expecting a baby, I felt like a mum. I was in awe when I saw the tiny arms and legs on the ultrasound scan, already completely in love.
And touching my bump was the closest thing I could do to touching my baby. It was a way of bonding us, of nurturing the baby inside of me. Similar to the way I talked to them constantly.
As my bump grew, touching it also became a protective instinct. Whenever I was standing on a train, or walking through a crowded street, holding my stomach was a way of keeping other people at a distance, protecting the life inside of me.
It is not, as these ignorant commenters imply, a physical effort of carrying your baby, or a way of showing off.
It’s being a mum.
Thankfully, Emily doesn’t seem to have let their words affect her. In fact, she even took the time to reply to their comments.
‘I find this so interesting. I, like so many women, get so many comments and questions like this (mainly from men) asking why I feel the need to always be cradling my baby bump, or touching it in some way,’ she said, replying to the first person.
‘It seems to really irritate some people. My only answer is that it’s my baby I’m physically and literally carrying. It’s one of the most natural instincts in the world. It’s a sign of affection and protection. And I’m probably hungry too. Hope this answers your pestiferous questions.’
An excellent response, but why on earth should she have to read these comments intended, as far as I can see, only to hurt? And why should she feel it necessary to justify her movements?
To the second person, she simply wrote, ‘I’m carrying a human love not a Prada sodding handbag.’
Good for you, Emily. You carry on holding your bump until you can hold your baby.
We can all see, it’s a beautiful look on you!
Do you have a story you’d like to share? Get in touch by emailing jess.austin@metro.co.uk.
Share your views in the comments below.
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