'Why this famous mum shouldn't have to defend her decision to travel with her young son'

OPINION -- A Dancing With The Stars professional dancer has revealed she's been mum-shamed for bringing her toddler on tour with her.

Jenna Johnson shared with her 928,000 followers that she received a DM telling her to "stop travelling with him, poor kid" after 19-month-old Rome fell sick and had to spend the night in an ambulance while they were staying in Chicago.

The working mum has used her social post to defend her reasons for travelling with her son wherever she needs to work – but she shouldn't have to.

Watch video above.

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This is her career, her livelihood and also her passion. Why should she have to give up travelling for her job if that's how she's done it most of her life?

Her son is in much better hands staying with his mum and dad whenever they travel for work than in the hands of a nanny for days or weeks on end.

She should be congratulated, not torn down.

She's actively showing her son that he is her priority and role-modelling to him that mums can have a career they love, as well as a family.

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It is possible, but some sacrifices do need to be made and in Johnson's case the sacrifice is constant travel.

I know many people will argue airports and aeroplanes aren't the most hygienic places for a baby to be, but neither is a daycare, or a playground, or a bus – they're all teeming with germs. 

I myself was asked "it's a bit early, isn't it?" while at the post office trying to get my newborn her first passport photos so we could visit family overseas. 

I didn't ask for a side of judgement with my photos – and unfortunately I didn't get the photos either, because apparently it was "too hard" because she was "too young" and I should come back when she's older and a more appropriate time to get an infant's passport photo.

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Straight away I started justifying to everyone in the near vicinity who was now watching this unfold that we had family to visit, that they wanted to see their niece and granddaughter, that she would be older when she travelled because the passport processing times are so lengthy.

I just kept rambling on and on and on for no other reason than I felt like this stranger had shamed me for wanting to take my newborn overseas.

Not helping the cause was the residual remarks from a fellow customer, who said, "You're brave", with her tone implying I'm going to be putting my baby at risk if I take her on a plane.

She would be fully vaccinated! But yes, of course there are risks. There are risks crossing the road, driving the car – do we comment on those? No, but when it comes to babies apparently it's a free for all.

I felt attacked, critiqued and looked down upon by people who didn't know me or the context of my decisions. The same applies to Johnson. 

Being a mum is the best but also the hardest job in the world, and it's not going to get any easier unless people start being a little kinder and a little more understanding that mums like Johnson are just trying to do their best.

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