At the start of her second trimester last July, Yeoh Mongchin, or better known as Mongabong, admitted that she was "still learning to accept" her new body.
In early 2023, the beauty influencer appears to have no problem with her post-childbirth body. Now, the issue is that the online world doesn't quite like how she portrayed herself doing so.
Mongchin gave birth to her son Micah on Christmas Day, and has celebrated this milestone in life with numerous photos and clips on Instagram.
Most parents do that nowadays, so nothing out of the ordinary so far.
That was until she posted an Instagram story of herself in activewear, a week after childbirth.
She appeared to be in good shape but how she chose to portray herself incurred the wrath of netizens.
PHOTO: Screengrab/Instagram/Mongabong
The in-photo caption "seven days PP" didn't sit well with netizens given that most new mums experience post-partum "baby blues" for up to two weeks.
According to Mayo Clinic, baby blues can include crying spells, mood swings, anxiety and difficulty sleeping.
One Instagram user mentioned it's great that Mongchin's body is back to how it was pre-pregnancy but that isn't always the case for others.
For those struggling with post-partum baby blues, this is likely to be "the last thing they want to see".
"It's honestly quite distasteful what you're doing," they added.
Mongchin has since removed the post and apologised.
"It was very insensitive of me and I definitely can see how it can give off unrealistic expectations of how a woman's body should bounce back or the amount of time one takes after giving birth — it's never my intention to do so," the 29-year-old said.
She even admitted it was rather "mindless" of her to have posted the story.
PHOTO: Screengrab/Instagram/Mongabong
Mongchin's daily use of make-up after delivering Micah was also a contentious topic online.
Her Instagram post on Dec 28 had her lying in a hospital bed carrying her baby boy.
One would think most people would look a little ragged after childbirth but with the wonders of cosmetics, you could hardly tell Mongchin only recently became a mother.
Among the comments congratulating her on the arrival of her son, the comments section were split in two camps.
One was critical of her decision to put on a full face of make-up while the other simply wondered how she had time to do so.
PHOTOS: Screengrabs/Instagram/Mongabong
In August last year, Mongchin mentioned how fearful she was about her pregnancy potentially failing.
She shared that she has polycystic ovary syndrome — women with this condition often face difficulties when it comes to conceiving as the hormonal imbalance interferes with the growth and release of eggs from the ovaries.
Back then, she mentioned how "ultra thankful" she was to get this opportunity to bring a baby to this world.
This article was first published on AsiaOne and republished on theAsianparent with permission
