December 1, 2024, 3:04 pm | Read time: 5 minutes
Anna Adamyan suffers from severe endometriosis. Despite this, she and her husband, Sargis Adamyan, did not give up – and announced the good news of their pregnancy in December 2022. However, they were not spared from criticism. Anna Adamyan revealed to STYLEBOOK how she deals with different opinions on motherhood.
A lot can go wrong when dealing with social taboos. Precisely because certain discourses are stigmatized, the horror is great when young women, in particular, give them a face. Model Anna Adamyan has used her personal experiences to remove the taboos surrounding artificial insemination, endometriosis, and miscarriages. After all, issues relating to women’s health are often swept under the carpet.
Overview
Anna Adamyan shares her experiences despite online hate
It took eleven attempts at artificial insemination before Anna Adamyan and her husband, Sargis, could welcome their now one-year-old son, Levi. Anna’s struggle with endometriosis further complicated their path to parenthood. Speaking at this year’s BILD Women’s Health Summit, the 28-year-old shared, “I had to raise my voice. No one in my circle experienced these symptoms—no bladder issues, no pain during menstruation or intercourse. Once I started being open about it, I noticed that it fostered understanding and prevented hurtful situations.”
That’s why Adamyan, known for her appearance on Germany’s Next Top Model, has now written about her journey to having children and her endometriosis story and published two books. Her goal: honesty. And on the internet, too. Anna’s latest project is aimed at a younger audience. The 28-year-old Lower Saxon is now planning to author a children’s book that she looks forward to reading to her son Levi soon. The reactions to the news of the new project have been largely positive and encouraging. However, this was not always the case. Especially just before and after the pregnancy, there was a lot of unwanted feedback.
STYLEBOOK: How obvious was it for you to let your community participate in your life during and after your pregnancy?
Anna Adamyan: “I took quite a long break after giving birth – and it felt like I could have extended it. Yet, I love what I do, particularly the interaction with my community. Sharing my life has been a part of my routine for years! Especially because so many of you out there have been excited about our desire to have children for years. It feels wonderful to finally share the happy ending.”
How do you deal with criticism? Are you now good at filtering comments?
“I always find criticism appropriate, as long as the tone is reasonable. We all learn something new every day, and so do I. I think it’s important to receive and accept criticism – as long as it’s justified. But many people have forgotten how to give criticism. Most of them become very personal and project their own views onto others. That’s not right and, unfortunately, doesn’t have much to do with genuine criticism in the end. I generally try not to take things too personally, although it’s not always easy.”
“I withdraw when there’s hate”
How do you manage to stay mentally fit in the face of criticism?
“Criticism is always desirable – hatred is something else, and of course, that doesn’t keep me mentally fit. Fortunately, I haven’t had to deal with much hate recently, and I’m very grateful for that. When there have been times like this, I’ve often taken a step back and told myself again and again that most people who express this hate often have problems with themselves and that I’m not the problem. This tends to be a common occurrence.”
As a mother, you get a lot of advice anyway – the fact that you are a public figure multiplies this amount. Are there also comments and feedback that you are particularly happy about?
“That’s true. It seems everyone else who has never even met your child knows better—joking aside. It really always depends, but I’ve actually already received a lot of valuable tips, and I’m happy about them. Particularly with topics like weaning or sleep, the dialogue is truly beneficial for me. As long as it stays on a friendly level, I’m always very happy.”
Previous experiences trigger fears
How easy is it for you to be honest on social media accounts? Is ‘honesty’ even desirable in the online world?
Anna: “I think honesty is incredibly important, especially online! Especially when it comes to advertising products or being a mother. We all need to learn again how important honesty is and, above all, to accept honesty and, in a way, be grateful for it. But honesty sometimes hurts. Nevertheless, it’s not always easy for me, as I’m also afraid of the reactions due to previous experiences.”
In fact, the 28-year-old has already had to defend herself from criticism several times. When she shared with her community shortly before her 12th week of pregnancy that the artificial insemination was successful, several followers wanted to put her in her place: Baby news, she said, should only be shared after three months of pregnancy, to which Anna countered glibly. She categorized the comments as offensive and said in her Instagram story: “Sorry, but anyone who believes that everything is fine from the twelfth week […] is unfortunately mistaken.”
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“My postpartum wasn’t nice at all”
You also talked about the lack of sleep. Were there any other challenges in the first few months after the birth of your child that surprised you?
“To be honest, I wasn’t surprised by the lack of sleep, as I already had a very realistic picture of everything and was aware that my life was going to change. However, I had a better idea of the postpartum period. My postpartum just wasn’t nice at all, and I still mourn it.”
Keyword motherhood and changes: Did your skincare and beauty routine change after Levi was born?
“Due to lack of time: yes! However, I strive to maintain my routine, even when I need to omit a few steps. Of course, my priorities have simply shifted.”