This 'bad mom' is shutting down her mommy-shamers

Sia Cooper is a personal trainer and mom of two. When it comes to parenting, she admits she’s felt heavy criticism of her parenting style via social media.

Questioning what a traditional “good mom” is, Cooper has listed all of the reasons the internet has told her she’s a “bad mom” over the years — and why she’s embracing the label.

“If I had a nickel for every time I’ve been called a ‘bad mom,’ I would be soooo rich!” she wrote in an Instagram post. “It seems almost impossible to be a textbook or politically correct good mom these days because everywhere you turn another mom is judging your parenting choices.

“I’ve been called a bad mom for: working out during pregnancy, working out while having kids… for letting my kids have sugar and Happy Meals occasionally, for not ‘covering up’ around my kids, for running a full-time business from home, for co-sleeping with my kids, for collecting sports cars and motorcycles a.k.a. having a hobby, for taking time for myself, for having abs.”

When it comes to proper parenting, Cooper reminded her followers that motherhood and parenting looks different to everyone — and that there isn’t a simple formula.

“There’s no one right way to parent or to be a mom,” she said. “We all are running in the same race and doing the best that we can. Motherhood is not a one-size-fits-all [situation] — what works for one family may not work for the next.”

“Who are we to judge another mom’s choices or reasoning?” she continued. “Being a mom is hard enough and if all of the following make me a ‘bad mom’ then I’ll gladly wear it proudly! Here’s to all the bad moms out there.”

The post has resonated online, with more than 22,000 likes and 1,500 comments, with many sharing their own “bad mom” experiences.

“Bad mom here because I couldn’t nurse my first,” wrote one commenter. “‘Only’ nursed my second for four months ‘til my milk dried up, and did it unashamedly in public, and chose not to nurse my third so I could equally split my attentions between my three children, then four and under… They’re all happy and healthy, but yeah, I’m a ‘bad mom.'”

“Boy did this speak to me!” added another parent. “Why can’t we just be real instead of judging each other? Who cares what I do, don’t do, feed my kids, etc. Why should I lose my identity just because I am a mom?”

To Cooper, the real bad moms are the ones who are constantly putting others down instead of accepting that parenting can be done a variety of ways. She says that if anything, social media has taught her that criticisms are often rooted in internal struggles.

“I’ve learned that the true ‘bad moms’ out there are the ones who constantly tear other moms down by judging them,” she wrote. “Those moms are the ones who are truly insecure and have strong feelings of inadequacy because why else would they do that? Misery loves company.”

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