Mum of quads embarrassed at baby’s swimming class: ‘No one wants to see’

Olivia* is a mother of two-year-old quadruplets and has started taking them to swimming lessons several times a week.

“This is their first year taking swimming lessons and, at their age, lessons require one-on-one with the child/adult as well as an instructor to teach,” she explained to Reddit.

“So me, my husband and two of my husband friends came. Unfortunately, all four kids were booked for the same time.”

“No one wants to see it”

In lessons, all the other children have their mothers or guardians with them and they all wear shorts or shirts, Olivia explains.

“My husband/his friends had shirtless trunks and I was wearing a pair,” she adds.

While the mother said it was “nothing bad” and “everything was well covered”, her stomach and back were definitely showing.

“I didn’t think it was a big deal, and I honestly didn’t notice what everyone was wearing until maybe three days later. And it was good because everyone (including me) was modest,” she said.

However, when her children finished their lessons one day last week, and they were all changing to leave, several mothers approached her.

“They said they didn’t want to bring it up early to make the classes difficult, but they and a few other moms were uncomfortable with the way I was wearing a doublet to class,” she wrote.

“They suggested that if I do another class with my children here, I cover my stomach because no one wants to see it.”

“This,” she says, refers to her stretch marks, which she has more than average because she had quadruplets.

“I asked if they had a problem with my husband/his friends not wearing a shirt at all, and they said they didn’t care because they didn’t have a ‘baby bump’ like me,” said the mother. – out of four he confessed. “Now I’m back home and I can’t decide if they were being rude or just being honest. They made sure to tell me it wasn’t about modesty, it was just my stomach. I never thought about it, so maybe it’s my fault for being careless and not thinking about everyone else. My husband says I was fine, but not all moms out there seem to think so. AITA?”

“They are insecure”

The top comment, with 14,000 likes, read: “The NTA were certainly being rude.

“Does everyone have to cover every part of the body that is different/damaged/unusual? “We were very uncomfortable seeing your burn wounds and your face, so wear a burqa, hood or stay home. Think of the children!’ or ‘We know not everyone wears dark sunglasses or eye patches, but being blind, your eyes are kind of awful and it bothers me. Thank you!’ or ‘Yeah, being fat while swimming your two-year-old just makes me feel bad because I’m afraid of getting fat, and even if you wear a prison suit while swimming, I can see your double chin and arm pits and those are icky, so please dispose of your body as soon as possible. Thank you!’”

And another person reassured mom, saying, “What you dislike (or resist) in others is often a reflection of what you dislike about yourself, whether it’s warranted or not. When we look deeper into their rudeness, it’s clear that mothers are self-conscious about their bodies.

“They’re scared of the OP being confident enough to let her stomach show. They wish they could. OP’s presence in the two-piece, especially when she’s accompanied by a crowd of men, puts her confidence and their insecurities in the spotlight.”

And a third called out a cruel irony. “It’s crazy that it was MUMS who said that. I’m sure they have a few stretch marks of their own, having had a baby or two too. Having an apron belly is normal if you’ve had a baby. They just absorb.”

“I would find every possible opportunity to show my stretch marks to those women if I saw them again after this,” suggested a fourth user.