I was excited to be a ‘boy mum’. Then I picked up my phone

August 3, 2026 — 5:00am

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Just months away from becoming the mum of two boys, I’m excited for many things. A glass of champagne, naturally, but mostly watching the light of my life step into his new role as big brother and meeting this precious tiny person who will complete our family.

My social media feed, however, seems intent on preparing me for something else.

Once the almighty algorithm learnt I was pregnant with a second boy, it unlocked a vault of something I wasn’t prepared for: “boy mum” content.

It started with stereotypical portrayals of a boy mum v girl mum house, serene calm pit against utter chaos. But it quickly escalated to depictions of actual violence, like one reel set on an escalator contrasting a pristine “girl mum” with a despondent and noticeably injured “boy mum”, black eye and all.

Arguably most disturbing are the videos labelling boy mums as toxic, and prone to Oedipal degrees of closeness with their sons, including captions like, “born to be your lover. Forced to be your mother”. Or actor and writer Jenny Mollen’s viral Facebook post from May 2026, with what some commenters considered intimate-looking photographs with her 12-year-old alongside a joke comparing a mother’s eldest son to a “toxic boyfriend”.

I lied about my kids’ screen time. But I don’t feel guilty about it

Sarah BerryLifestyle Health........

© The Age