Cinematographer shares her thoughts on women working during pregnancy

Did you work in your third trimester?

This mum did and has shared her opinion on the realities of being a pregnant working mum. Cinematographer Rachel Morrison went viral after she posted to Facebook with a photograph of herself working while eight months pregnant. The post that has been shared over a thousand times read;

"There’s a common misconception that likens pregnancy to some kind of disability— the idea that women who are pregnant shouldn’t be active and can’t go about their normal lives... While no two pregnancies are the same, I just want to say that for many to most women this isn’t the case at all. I just wrapped a feature #againstallenemies at 8+ months pregnant. Now I’m on to a commercial and I plan to keep shooting for as long as anyone will hire me knowing in a few weeks I may have to replace myself if I go into labor on set... the point is I am NOT a superhero. I am just going about my life doing the thing that I love for as long as I can because the more I work before baby the longer I can take off after. Which should also be MY choice and no one else’s. Physically speaking I could have gone back to work within a week of having my son. At the time, I lost many jobs because people were nervous to hire me so soon after the birth but again I say this should be left up to us. Pregnancy and motherhood in general is not a disadvantage and the craft doesn’t suffer as a result. If anything the added experience and enhanced empathy has made me a better cinematographer and filmmaker. That’s all. Happy Friday! "

I worked freelance in film and media during both my pregnancies but I'm not going to lie, I felt like I had to hide the fact that I was pregnant for most of the time. Like Rachel, I felt like people wouldn't want to hire me because they thought I wouldn't be up to the job. While I was pregnant with my daughter I applied for a job reporting at an event. The person in charge of hiring knew I was pregnant and I worried that it would automatically knock me out of the running even though I was still well able to work. My fears were unfounded and not only was I hired but the organisers running the event could not do enough to make sure I had access to water, somewhere to sit if I needed it and most importantly toilets! It restored my faith in being hired as a mum or more specifically expectant mum, but unfortunately, I've come across more companies with a closed-door policy when it comes to taking a chance on mums. With the cost of living rising in Ireland, it's becoming more and more necessary for mothers to work, even if their partner is earning an income. How can this be done though if companies refuse to hire women that are or are soon to be mums? The assumption that mums in the workplace would be somehow less reliable because they may need to take days off if their child is sick etc... is not only discriminatory towards women but also to men. Dads play a very important role in the lives of our children and are just as likely to take time off if their child needed them. https://www.instagram.com/p/BltA46VnoFN/?taken-by=rmorrison Those who read Rachel's post found it inspirational and there were a lot of comments;

"Great example of what women do, every day! Keep kicking ass Rachel. Keep showing the world that this is an asset and not a liability." "This rocks, SO MUCH Rachel!! Thanks for blowing up these outdated expectations and inspiring all!"

In the comments, Rachel spoke to people and said that while this was how she felt during pregnancy her post wasn't to put any pressure on other mums to do the same. A lot of women experience conditions like hyperemesis gravidarum and low iron levels when they are expecting which can lead to them being house or even hospital bound. Every pregnancy is different but what this mum's post proves is that mothers, third trimester or otherwise, should never be underestimated!