Will 2016 be the year that pregnancy bodies become a thing of the past? Spoiler alert: no, they won’t. But perhaps people will care less about them than they did this year.
Or at least one can hope.
Despite pregnancy being a thing since the beginning of time, it seems the appearance of expectant mothers — with baby bumps both big and small — concerned more people than ever before.
Here are a couple of the stories that drew the most attention.
Pregnancy wardrobe
Our very own Kristi Gordon, a Global BC metereologist currently on maternity leave, was attacked for her clothing choices.
These are the types of tops she was criticized for most:
“Nowhere on North America TV have we seen a weather reader so gross as you,” read one letter she received.
Her response to her haters went viral.
WATCH: Kristi Gordon, Robin Stickley and Squire Barnes discuss the letter
A couple months later, a B.C. city councillor came under fire after he said tight clothing on pregnant women looks like “sausage casings.”
WATCH: Even after a backlash against body shaming, a White Rock, B.C. city councillor said he agreed with the negative comments
Muscular baby bump
Lingerie model Sarah Stage was vilified on social media after sharing images of her super-toned pregnant body.
WATCH: The photo of her washboard abs was snapped 10 days before her due date
Some of her followers said the barely-there baby bump was “odd” or “super weird.” Others questioned the plausibility and safety of her pregnancy.
Doctors tried to calm down the critical masses. They explained genetics, eating and exercise habits, along with a woman’s physical health going into the pregnancy all play a role in how she looks when expecting.
WATCH: Dr. Brett Belchetz on whether or not pregnant women should work out
“She’s obviously in excellent shape and her abdominal muscles might have remained so strong during her pregnancy that they simply mask her growing uterus from view,” Dr. Alyssa Dweck, an ob-gyn, told Women’s Health magazine.
“She could also have pelvic bones that provide a lot of room for the uterus to expand inward, rather than outward.”
The model gave birth to a healthy eight pound baby a couple weeks later.
Post-baby body
The most redeeming pregnancy-related story to go viral this year came courtesy of a Canadian mom.
In an inspirational blog post to fellow moms, Joanna Venditti spoke candidly about how she went from mourning her pre-pregnancy body to celebrating her transformation into motherhood.
Venditti’s message went international and was even translated into several languages.
“It’s really resonating with people,” Venditti told Global News.
“I’m glad it’s making other moms feel more normal about what they’ve gone through, or what their feelings are about what their bodies look like.”
With files from James Armstrong, Carmen Chai and Amy Judd, Global News
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