Life As A Mommy Blogger: The Disturbing Things The Internet Has Said To Me

I’m sure you have heard the saying “a picture speaks 1,000 words.” What does this picture make you speak? Feel? Think?

These are just a few of the many hateful words that have been spoken about me, as a mommy blogger, over the last few years that are engraved in my memory. Words that have left a wound in my heart. Words that have deeply hurt and left me in tears. Words I have not forgotten. Words that have caused me to question my self worth. Words that have no face behind them, just power.

Someone somewhere felt the need to say these words to me. It was easier for them to type these words behind a screen than to say it to my face, because online bullying gives a human being power. They bullied me, shamed me, and judged me.

I don’t know who wrote them, but whoever did felt they could speak to me this way. They felt it was okay to call me names, horrible names. They used the power of their keyboard to shame my decisions as a mother. Their words aren’t just words. They are words that caused to me feel things. Words that left me sad. Lonely. Ugly. Unwanted. Undeserving. Heartbroken. Sickened.

Somehow the world around us has taken the power of being behind the computer and used it to bring shame, torment, and hurt to people they don’t even know. It is devastating to see the affects it has had in our world. And it something that happens all too often.

I know not everyone will like me or what I have to say, but I am human too. I am affected by these words. I have feelings and emotions. I don’t share the raw truths of my story so I can be criticized. I believe sharing our stories connects us human beings. Being vulnerable shouldn’t be an opportunity to be shamed, ridiculed, or embarrassed. How are we ever supposed to grow and raise good people if we are ourselves are using the power of a screen to express awful things to one another?

We should be lifting each other up, standing beside one another, believing in the best of each other. That is how we grow. That is how we become better humans. That is how we raise good humans.

Over the years I have learned how to handle these words. I learned it is often pointless to respond. I have learned I can’t always read the comments on a blog post that may be argumentative. I have learned I can’t give these words power. It is what the face behind them wants. I can’t let them destroy me. But I am human too.

And I wish these words were just words, but they aren’t. Unfortunately, there isn’t much I can do to stop the person behind the computer who express these words, but I can try my best to stand against online bullying. I will do my part and link arms with the hurting and broken-hearted, and believe for greatness. I will share my story no matter how many times someone decides to offer negativity my way. I am human too. And words are never just words. Lets stand together against online bullying.

This story was submitted to Love What Matters by Desiree Fortin of California. You can follow her journey as a mom of triplets on Instagram. Subscribe to our free email newsletter, Living Better—your ultimate guide for actionable insights, evidence backed advice, and captivating personal stories, propelling you forward to living a more fulfilling life.