Pregnant model, 24, hits back after trolls cruelly shame her for having a ‘barely visible’ bump at 35 weeks
A PREGNANT model has hit out at trolls who shamed her for having a "tiny" baby bump at 35 weeks.
Belle Lucia, 24, documented her entire pregnancy on social media, but received a backlash over the size of her tum.
The London-based model, originally from Sydney, was forced to delete posts after shamers hit out over her "lack" of a baby bump.
She kept updating fans as her pregnancy progressed to 41 weeks on – and she welcomed a healthy baby weighing just over seven pounds.
But during her pregnancy she was forced to remove her ultrasound video after receiving nasty comments, saying: “I don't have a bump yet.
"Women grow at different rates, and just because I have no bump doesn't mean I'm not pregnant."
Belle shared snaps of other women’s bumps, showing how much they can vary in size.
She defended herself, saying: “Just because I’m not showing as much as you like doesn’t mean my pregnancy is ‘unhealthy’ or that I’m promoting a ‘skinny’ pregnancy – like some say.
“It’s just my body and I cannot help how I’m showing like many other women.
“Body shaming is not okay – no matter how ‘big’ or ‘small’ one is.”
She updated her 1.4 million followers with the news of the birth yesterday, saying: “Birth was the best experience of my life (I know I said that about pregnancy but birth was even more positive and magical).
“Can’t wait to do it again.”
Despite receiving criticism throughout the pregnancy, she confirmed her bundle of joy was healthy.
She added: “We are so completely in love with our perfectly healthy new addition, the most perfect baby ever.”
Belle said that despite the backlash she received, she wasn’t put off sharing her pregnancy.
She said: “Despite receiving a lot of hate throughout my pregnancy I’ve absolutely loved documenting my journey.
“I highly recommended taking as many photos/videos as possible to look back on this special moment, who cares what people think.”
Fans have praised her resilience throughout over the past few months, with one saying: “So sad that you have received so much hate throughout such a special time.
“Everyone has a different pregnancy journey and a different size bump.”
Another said: “You did well considering how many nasty things were said to you."
A third added: “You don’t deserve any hate! Thank you for documenting ur journey, it’s been so beautiful to see the changes every week!”
MOST READ IN FABULOUS
Meanwhile, this woman was caught out lying about being pregnant on How To Catch A Cheater.
In other relationship news, this single mum, 51, claims lying about her age on Tinder by just two years gets her five times as many dates.