In an effort to “end the stigma” and dispel any preconceived notions about disabilities, this woman became pregnant.

For the past 22 weeks, Alex Dacy, who has a rare genetic disease, has been documenting her pregnancy to hopefully “end the stigma” and quash ableist ideas about disability, pregnancy, and parenthood.

“Disabled parenthood is so heavily stigmatized in society, and I really want to open up conversations about this topic,” she wrote on Instagram.

Alex has spinal muscular atrophy type 2, a genetic condition that affects the motor neurons, the nerves that control muscle movement. Since falling pregnant unexpectedly, she has had to stop her treatment.

“I am considered a high-risk pregnancy, but I am being seen by a full team of doctors,” she said.

“A lot of women with my disease give birth… yes, it is pretty much hell, but it is possible.”

She said the main issue will likely be her respiratory health, and she may require a C-section.

Alex also shared that she’ll need to be intubated during delivery, which “sucks” but is “the safest thing we could do for me.”

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Now 22 weeks along, Alex has been subject to a plethora of ableist questions and comments online, to which she has been responding.

“Are you saying that disabled people can’t care for babies? Seems pretty ableist to me,” she said in response to someone questioning how she will care for her baby after they’re born.

“Don’t underestimate disabled people,” she said in the video where she showed her range of movement by flipping off the commenter.

Sadly, Alex said a non-disabled person assuming her capabilities and expressing their unsolicited ableist opinion about her parenting ability is “nothing new” but still “unacceptable.”

“Is it that they’re projecting their own nervousness & insecurity about their own parenting skills & projecting it onto me?” she asked.

“Maybe seeing a disabled woman pregnant is so uncomfortable for some that they feel the need to lash out in an effort to comfort themselves about something they’re not nearly exposed to enough.”

She said these views are not about her or whether or not they think she can raise a child, but rather it’s about the stigma, people’s discomfort with disability, and a lack of education, representation, and visibility.

“End the stigma,” she simply stated.

“Stop bump shaming.” Some people have even criticized the size of her baby bump.

“Stop bump shaming,” she wrote on Instagram.

“I never thought I’d say that in my life. All bumps are made different. All bodies are different. All bodies are valid and worthy.”

Alex said she has received “so many” comments from people saying “you’re not even showing” and questioning whether she is pregnant at all.

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