Mommy Shaming

Mommy shaming is when one or more people bully a mother about her parenting choices. The shaming may be communicated in a variety of ways, including blunt or subtle in-person criticisms or as comments online on social media and parenting forums.

Mommy shaming is typically done by a group of moms who think a mom who is doing things differently than them is somehow inferior. This may come from the pack of moms' insecurity about their own performance as mothers or they don't want to be bullied themselves.

Before the Internet, mommy shaming would typically occur in-person at mom gatherings, such as meal get-togethers or kid sporting events. It would also occur on the phone when meeting in-person wasn't an option. However, after the Internet became more widely used and forums and social media popped up, mommy shaming exploded. Keyboard warriors began sharing their opinions and cyberbullied other online users.

Some examples of mommy shaming include criticizing how the mom dresses her kids, what she teaches her kids, what food she feeds them, the chores she makes them do, and how long she breastfeeds them. The term may also appear as "Mom-shaming" or "Mom shaming."