ABC Rejected This Ad Featuring Postpartum Moms from the Oscars Broadcast

frida mom rejected ad

Frida Mom sells a range of postpartum products, including peri bottles and ice packs that every new mom needs in her arsenal after giving birth. Sure, some people consider the postpartum period to be “beautiful,” but it’s also painful and messy and involves wearing some lovely mesh underwear. The company says it submitted an ad that shows this reality to ABC to air during the Oscars, but claims the network rejected the ad on the grounds that it was “too graphic.”

The ad shows a woman waking up in the middle of the night, going to the toilet, and tending to her postpartum body, an experience that includes flushing out stitches and changing pads. It’s not exactly glamorous, but anyone who’s given birth has been there.

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“We created this campaign and wanted to share a raw and honest portrayal of what a woman navigating this physical transformation for the first time goes through,” Frida Mom CEO Chelsa Hirschhorn said in a statement. “We thought there would be no better outlet or channel than on a night that awards storytelling at the highest level.”

It’s worth noting that Frida also sells products that suck snot and gas out of baby’s orifices. These are also tasks that aren’t exactly chic, but when you have a baby, they come with the territory. VICE has reached out to ABC for comment on the ad and we’ll update our post if and when we receive a response.