On Wednesday, Chrissy Teigen announced on Instagram that she and John Legend had lost their baby, Jack. Chrissy was about half way through her “quarantine surprise” pregnancy, but had been experiencing ongoing bleeding that ultimately ended the pregnancy.
Our hearts absolutely break for Chrissy as she experiences pregnancy loss, something that’s all too common. October is Pregnancy & Infant Loss Awareness Month, and we know that sharing the stories of loss can help other women feel less alone.
We can’t do anything to take away the pain that Chrissy and her whole family are feeling, but we wanted to take a moment to acknowledge what a strong woman she is, and why she’s become such an icon for modern moms. Here are 5 moments when Chrissy Teigen has showed up for all mamas.
1. When She Shared Her Loss and Fertility Struggles Openly
Your heart just breaks looking at Chrissy’s Instagram post. But this isn’t the first time that Chrissy has been an open book for others who are in pain. In the past, she’s shared about how she and Legend had to go through IVF to have their two children, Luna, 4, and Miles, 2, and how difficult the pain of infertility has been for them as a couple.
And in typical Chrissy fashion, she didn’t hold back from sharing their pain now.
2. When She Clapped Back at Mom Shamers
Every mom knows how constant the criticism is. Whatever decision you make, there’s someone — usually who isn’t raising small children — who will tell you that it was the wrong one. The criticism is especially relentless if you’re a stunningly beautiful, millionaire mom of color who shares her life transparently online.
Luckily Chrissy doesn’t play when it comes to putting internet trolls in their place. A quick scroll through the comments on her Instagram highlights her wit. There are so many gems. A personal favorites: the time a troll commented that Luna “finally” had her hair brushed, and Chrissy offered to send Luna over to give the troll make-up lessons.
3. When She Shared Herself Both Bottle Feeding and Breastfeeding Her Babies
Chrissy knows fed is best, and she’s used her platform to show the world that she has know shame in feeding her kids by breast or by bottle.
This was posted to John’s account, so when someone asked “are you no longer breastfeeding,” Chrissy let her snark fly: “John never breastfed Miles,” she wrote.
Then, there was this heartwarming image:
We love that Chrissy pulls no punches about doing what’s best for her and her babies (and thier dolls).
4. When She Was All Too Real About Her Mom Bod
Let’s be clear: Chrissy is stunning and mom bods are amazing in all shapes and forms. But despite her amazing figure, we love that Chrissy keeps it real about the changes that pregnancy and nursing (not to mention fertility treatments) have on a woman.
When one internet troll commented with shock that she was pregnant again, she pointed out that it’s completely normal for postpartum women to have a belly. “I just had a baby, but thank you for being sooo respectful,” she replied.
Another time, someone tried to shame her by commenting that an old picture of her and John was “before boobs and filler.” This time, Chrissy barely kept her cool: “Boobies and filler? F*ck off with that shit,” she wrote. “2 babies and 10 years. Bye.”
5. When She Owned Her Ambitions
We love a women (especially a mom) who can talk openly about career and money. That’s Chrissy. When someone accused her of “spending other people’s money,” she quickly replied with a Forbes estimation of her $13.5 million worth.
“my money,” she wrote.
Mic. Drop.
6. When She Got Real About Mom Life
“if u are thinking about having children, wonderful! but know u can’t do sh*t alone ever again ever,” Teigen wrote in this gem of a post highlight exactly what mom life looks like. Yup.
In the end, no matter how much beauty and money you have, dealing with pregnancy and infant loss is just devastating.
Chrissy lost her baby–in an almost cruel irony–on the start of Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month in October, and her loss has set into motion a movement to speak even more openly about the pain, isolation, and grief a loss can have.
We are here for all the mothers, who, like Chrissy, know this pain. And we hope Chrissy knows that for all the times she has been there for other mothers, we are here for her now.
