Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Omg -fat shamed by 3yo

65 replies

unsuresue2 · 27/08/2023 20:16

At my young son football match, supporting from the sidelines - standing at a fence- another mum's little 3 or 4 year old girl comes up to me as innocent as can be and says "have you a baby in your tummy"
As lovely as it would be for a pregnant person- I'm just fat, and since I have had my 3 kids (14, 12, 9) have a tummy at the same position as my bust!
Can't ever bring myself to be annoyed with the beautiful little girl- big wide eyes and blonde curls - such a sweetie - an am on a weight loss journey- currently paying £300 for Oxempic for 4 weeks- so know I need to loose up to 2 stone
My body shape has always been a fat tummy
But I am annoyed and embarrassed by what is very obviously visible to everyone and only the innocent children doesn't have the filter to hide

OP posts:
Deathbyfluffy · 27/08/2023 22:53

Flickersy · 27/08/2023 20:32

That isn't "fat-shaming".

That's just a little girl who doesn't yet understand the complexities of social mores.

If you think it's shaming, that's on you.

This.
It’s just kids being kids; don’t read too much into it.
Use it as motivation for your weight loss journey!

Whatisgoingon16 · 27/08/2023 22:54

When my eldest was very small he would loudly call me ‘squishy mummy’ in public😁

Sugarcoatt · 27/08/2023 22:59

DD once told a lady with facial disfigurement that she looked like a monster. I was mortified and apologised profusely. The lady said it was fine because children don’t understand, and she’s had much worse comments from adults who should know better. Kids have no filter, they just say what they see. My 5yo has told me a few times that my stomach is horrible (after it was disfigured by giving birth to him!)

Hankunamatata · 27/08/2023 23:01

I would have just replied 'no sweetie, just too much cake'. It can only be shaming if you let it be

NeedingAGoodNap · 27/08/2023 23:03

My recently turned 3 year old thinks everyone has a baby in their tummy. This is thanks to her room lead at nursery sitting all the children down and telling them she was pregnant and showing an ultrasound before she was even showing.

So it may not be about size! My daughter is skinny and thinks she has a baby on here tummy as well.

Saschka · 27/08/2023 23:03

Mine very kindly told me I could work out at the gym while he was at his gymnastics class, and then I wouldn’t be fat. Thank you darling, what a thoughtful offer.

Staygoldponyboystaygold · 27/08/2023 23:17

I was perched on a chair last week and a (I would guess) 3 year old came up and wobbled my leg fat!! I’ve tried to block it out!

Jimmyneutronsforehead · 27/08/2023 23:41

Op don't sweat it.

My 4 year old cannon balls off the sofa onto my "bouncy castle belly" umpteen times a day.

My 5 year old neice asked me if I was sad a few weeks ago and I said no, why would I be sad? And she said because you're old and not married.

I'm 28.

Kids are cruel 😂

alwaysscared · 27/08/2023 23:54

About a year after I went back to work after maternity leave (DS 10 now), I was at a big stakeholder meeting, about 30 people there. One of them said, very loudly, oh alwaysscared I didn't know you were expecting again, congratulations!
I was not expecting, and my stomach has not gone down since, in fact it's got bigger
The lady was so embarrassed, so I played it down, but damn it stung!!

birdseatworms · 28/08/2023 00:37

I was in the communal changing room after swimming at our local leisure centre when a young girl looked at me and asked her mum "why is that lady so fat". I just smiled at the girl and said I liked to eat little children.

comealong · 28/08/2023 02:45

My daughter asked if I had a baby in my tummy.. and I though, here comes the comment about being fat..
but I asked why she wanted to know and it was because "you've got boobies and boobies are for feeding babies.."
not totally wrong I guess- she was also very disbelieving that one day she'd also have boobies of her own!

Theoriginalmrscillianmurphy · 28/08/2023 03:12

Getting out of the shower one day my young son asked me why my boobs were so long.

Beat that.

Muu · 28/08/2023 03:39

I was drawing with my 2 year old a few weeks ago when I was very pregnant and I drew the most unflattering cartoon of myself, basically the largest twirlywoo but with breasts. I asked my daughter what it was and she immediately got it right, it’s mummy. i brought that one on myself.

HappiDaze · 28/08/2023 03:42

My DD age 4 asked a woman on the the bus once why she was so fat and just wouldn't let it go

It was mortifying

I then had to strike up a conversation with this woman to deflect from it all

elifont · 28/08/2023 04:20

Fat shamed 😂 you could be 19 but ask a 4 year old they might say your 90. If a young kid looks at their mum and thinks they would look better if they lost a stone, kids are only 'cruel ' by our own standards. They have such unconditional love that 'chubby' is positive to them. It's only adults who see it as bad

New posts on this thread. Refresh page