Early this past Thursday, Chrissy Teigen announced in a heart-breaking Instagram post that she had lost her third child with John Legend.
The little boy they had come to call "Jack" passed away following several blood transfusions that attempted to save his life.
I have never personally lost a child, but I can only imagine how gut-wrenching it is.
I imagine spending months preparing for the arrival of a child. I imagine the ride home from the hospital. Chrissy Teigen didn't get that reality.
Unfortunately, during one of the hardest moments of her life, critics attacked Teigen on social media.
These comments range from asking why she would take pictures and that the loss was a matter of karma rooted in conspiracy theories. I have never personally known Chrissy, so I cannot speak on behalf of her actions. One thing that I will say is that while I don't believe these theories, this is just unspeakable. This poor woman had spent days in the hospital constantly worried for her son's life only to receive horrendous hate.
Even if you don't like her or believe the conspiracy theories, remember that this woman just lost her son.
Allow her to grieve however she sees fit. She is a celebrity who has shared every aspect of this scary journey with her fans. When she released the most heartbreaking news, she was met with backlash. This is not OK.
As someone who followed her hospital story, I can understand how she might feel obligated to post an update.
Vulnerability should not be scrutinized. Some people take pictures to cope. Some people post things to cope. Some people take a break from the public eye to cope.
No matter how a person copes, they should not be criticized.
Announcing something like this could not have been easy. I've known people who couldn't bear to say they'd had a miscarriage publicly until years after their next child was born. It is an unspeakable pain that some of us can only try to imagine, and I hope that the public begins to ease up and allow them to have peace. My hope is that Chrissy and John can continue to grieve in the way they see fit.
My prayers are with them.
