Nowadays, most people use social media as their primary means of communication. Sending pictures of your kids to friends and family is customary so they can enjoy them.
She posts on social media similarly to other young mothers, but the feedback on her pictures and how she interacts with her child are very different. But she has some comments to make.
Natasha, a new mother, is getting used to being a parent. Like many new mothers, she enjoys sharing pictures of her one-year-old son Raedyn online. She does, however, endure severe online harassment because of her son’s appearance, which is unusual for mothers.
The popular social media platform TikTok is where she posts videos of Raedyn and herself. And she regularly gets requests—if not hundreds of them—to stop posting pictures or videos of her son in the comments section of each post.
Natasha, however, has a message for her critics: “I won’t quit… He is perfect, and just because he looks different doesn’t make him any less so,” she declares.
She frequently receives emails and comments with the subject line “What’s wrong with your child? Why does your child look that way?
Young Raedyn was born with Pfeiffer syndrome, which causes limb, face, and skull deformities. Natasha, however, thinks her son is perfect, so she posts videos of him online whenever she gets the chance.
She recounts some of the typical comments she hears, such as “What quality of life will he have?” and “Why would you make him live like that? You are allowing him to lead such a miserable existence,” but she also notes that people are generally mean.
Natasha also gets comments from people in real life, as if internet trolls weren’t cruel enough. When she is out in public, she complains that random people approach her and ask her rude questions, saying, “People just come up to me and impolitely ask: what’s wrong with your child? Or why does your child look that way?’ That is not the appropriate way to address a human being.
Even being in public is difficult for her because of the endless questions she will undoubtedly get. Repeatedly describing my son’s medical issues is exhausting, she said.
She struggles to comprehend the level of interest in her son because of the way he looks. “Does he seem different? He lives the same life as any other youngster,” she inquires. Yes, but it doesn’t make him any less valuable.
The speaker continued, “I will fight for that until the day I die. He deserves life, and he deserves acceptance.
She dislikes people’s concern for her, especially when they unexpectedly approach her as she is going about her business and ask her questions.
She said people needed to understand that she is just a mother, that her son is still a young child, and that his illness does not control their lives.
The exhausted young mother continued, “Just because my son looks a little different doesn’t mean he’s only a lesson to give the world. It can be mentally and emotionally draining to repeatedly repeat my son’s diagnosis and health problems to others.
We are just your average family. I wish everyone would accept people with disabilities and not stereotype them based on their appearance or limitations.
It is incredibly upsetting to see that, even today, people are still quick to judge those who are even the slightest bit different from them. We hope that people will begin to be more considerate and inclusive.
