A mom on Instagram has had to defend herself after cruel trolls attacked her for posting an image of herself in a bikini alongside her 15-year-old son.
Sophie Guidolin, from Australia's Gold Coast, posted an Instagram photo of herself and her son on his birthday - captioned: "Happy 15th Kai #firstborn." The only apparent issue? The women's bodybuilding pro was wearing a bikini.
The mom-of-four has made a name for herself in the women's fitness industry, after deciding to lead a healthier life upon being diagnosed with diabetes during her first pregnancy.
After receiving a slew of vile comments from Instagram users on the photo she took with her son, Guidolin had to edit the caption to add: "WE LIVE IN THE GOLD COAST, Australia. Where wearing a bikini to the beach is so beyond normal, that I didn't even consider having to place a disclaimer on this photo [sic]."
She continued: "When Kai woke up, I was in the pool and yes - in a bikini (as I am most days!!!) I wanted a photo straight away as he wanted to ride his bike and go out riding all day immediately. Do I have a problem wearing a bikini in front of my sons? NO WAY."
"Why? Because I'm not sexualized to him, nor have I ever been!!! If you have an issue, maybe you should look into why you feel you have to sexualize a woman's body instead of it simply being a mum and her son at the pool!!! [sic]," she added.
In an interview with news.com.au, Sophie has said there is "no way" she's going to stop wearing a bikini around her family, adding: "I can hand on my heart say, that in my opinion, there was nothing wrong with the photo, post, and context."
Fortunately, other users were immensely supportive of the fit mom, with one person saying: "To all offenders here: Why the hell are you following her then?!? What if she likes attention?! She puts a lot work into her look so she's probably proud of it. Why on earth is that a problem that she takes a pic in a bikini with her son?"
"I used to have pics like that with my mum when I was little, she was even topless on one of them! You are so sick to have thoughts like this and probably have nothing better in your pity lives than trying to bring others down. Shame there's so many of you in this world!" they continued.
Guidolin eventually had to take to her Instagram story to voice her concerns, telling her more than 500,000 followers: "The good thing to mention here is that I wear bikinis in front of my kids because my body is normal. Having a body is normal, having body parts is normal, it's not sexualized, it's nothing shameful, and it's something I reiterate and drive home here with my boys."
"So when they see me in a bikini, they don't think anything other than 'Hmm, mum's tanning, mum's going to the beach, going for a swim.' They don't see me and be like 'Oooh what a sexy bum you've got,'" she spoke to the camera.
And she's right to block out the haters - let a woman live!
