No matter how much you wanted it or how long you waited for it, you could end up feeling that pregnancy really sucks. It could be the morning sickness that does it, or perhaps you’ll make it until the third trimester when the aches and pains force you to realise that pregnancy is not the nine months of joy you had expected.
Lets look at how one mother sums up pregnancy.
Whenever you have that odd day when you feel sorry for yourself for being pregnant. Of course, it’s lovely but that doesn’t mean pregnancy is always wonderful. Some days it can feel really tough to battle pregnancy symptoms, especially in the first trimester when your friends and family might not know you’re expecting. And on those days, you’ll need the support of a straight-talking pregnancy-basher like yourself.
Illustrator, Line Severinsen sums up pregnancy in a breath of fresh air
Line Severinsen is one of those mums. She is an illustrator animator from Bergen who put her creativity to good use in her quest to share the realities of pregnancy, birth and beyond. During her first pregnancy in 2012, she produced her first pregnancy illustrations. As a first-time mother, Line seemed to know exactly what all the other first-time mums were thinking. Since then, they have been shared widely, allowing mothers worldwide to benefit from her work. Her work went viral and it’s not hard to see why. She is a funny mum whose comics sum up pregnancy in an amusing, relatable and easy-to-understand way.
Her popular comic, Kos of Kaos (Cuddles and Chaos in English), shows the realities of her experience of pregnancy and motherhood. By sharing her comics with the world as a first-time mum, she opened up conversations about pregnancy struggles, the reality of birth and the anxieties of new parents.
Helping mothers by creating relatable, funny illustrations
Line’s work is relatable and helps women feel less alone throughout their pregnancies. She has a fabulous illustration of a woman sitting on a toilet, squinting at a pregnancy test, with a bin overflowing with tests next to her. I’m sure many pregnant mums can relate to those early tests where you desperately search for a line but struggle to trust it even if you find one.
Her work covers the whole pregnancy timeline, from pregnancy test anxiety to being unable to get your shoes on in the third trimester. Pregnant people connected with her work and shared her drawings far and wide.
Pregnant women love her shaving illustration, too. If you’re heavily pregnant, you’ll know only too well the struggles of trying to shave while pregnant. How are you supposed to reach down there with a big bump in the way?
Another artwork features a pregnant woman trying to squeeze between two cars. Is anything more frustrating than finding you can’t get into your car because somebody has parked too close? It’s not like you’re in ideal shape to climb across the passenger seat at that stage, either.
Capturing the everyday struggles of family life
Line now has two children, and her illustrations capture the everyday struggles of family life. Her work has struck a chord with other mums and mums-to-be. As well as battling taboos, she provides some much-needed light relief to pregnant mothers who are struggling with pregnancy nausea, indigestion and all the other challenging symptoms of pregnancy.
Sometimes, a smile is all you need to lift your mood
Sometimes, smiling at a relatable pregnancy cartoon is all you need to lift your mood. I love the illustration of a happily snoozing dad-to-be tucked up in bed next to a big cow, who’s on her back, with legs splayed, and propped up by pregnancy pillows. I think any pregnant woman can relate to that drawing!
Using humour to guide you through the darkest pregnancy days
Illustrator Line creates pregnancy illustrations to guide you through your darkest pregnancy days. These aren’t rose-tinted, glossy images of dream pregnancies. Her colourful pictures show what pregnancy is really like.
The image of a pregnant woman lying in bed grimacing with her leg straight up in the air brought back painful memories of leg cramps. They say a picture is worth a thousand words. She has certainly managed that!
Getting down to the nitty-gritty of pregnancy
Line’s images get down to the nitty-gritty of pregnancy that many women struggle with: like the difficulty of shaving your pubic hair when you have a giant bump in the way, for example. Or the shockingly rude comments about bump size many pregnant women receive from friends and family members.
Her work tackles taboo issues, in the hope of reaching other mums who need to know all this is normal. It might not be fun when you poop during the birth but it is something to be expected, so why feel embarrassed about it?
She also produces short animations depicting family life. One recent example showed a mother looking at her phone (that’s you now, right?) and accidentally dropping it on her baby’s head. Her work is a real-life parenting diary. By being honest, she makes her fans feel better. Thank goodness it’s not just me who drops my phone on my baby’s head, you might be thinking.
She’s not worried about creating the illusion of a perfect life; instead, she’s just telling it like it is and helping new mums everywhere to breathe a collective sigh of relief. With Instagram showing a never ending doom scroll of perfect mothers and their perfect lives, these comics are a much-needed breath of fresh air.
‘It’s like you are inside every woman’s head!’
Line’s work attracts supportive comments from women across the world. On her Facebook page, someone commented, ‘It’s like you are inside every woman’s head! At least we can have a good laugh by looking at your drawings!’
Writing on her website, she says:
‘My name is Line Severinsen and I’m an illustrator, animator, and UX designer, living in Bergen, Norway. I started this cartoon as a personal diary in 2012 when I was pregnant with my daughter. I was very sick for the first three months, tired of dealing with some inconsiderate comments and people, which led me to start drawing. By making a little bit of fun of them and the situation, I was able to laugh it off and put it behind me’.
Channeling pregnancy emotions into creating comics
Luckily for the rest of us, Line channeled her pregnancy emotions from that first pregnancy into creating comics so the rest of us wouldn’t have to feel so alone in our pregnancies. Her cartoons might not prevent morning sickness but sometimes just knowing you’re not the only person with her head in the toilet bowl, thanks to morning sickness, can help.
The perfect baby shower gift
Line’s cartoons are so relatable she even published a book of them to entertain fellow pregnant mothers. I’m So Pregnant features funny illustrations showing pregnancy’s awkward and uncomfortable truths. This is a perfect baby shower gift for your pregnant friend who deserves a giggle after the strain of growing a new human being.
You can purchase some of her work through her Etsy page, too, so be sure to keep an eye out for your favourite cartoons.
There’s even a colouring book of pregnancy cartoons for expectant mums to colour in. Colouring is a fantastic mindful activity to while away those final weeks of pregnancy, so be sure to order a copy for your pregnant friends to show them you understand what they’re going through.
If you’re in need of a few more pregnancy-related laughs, check out the BellyBelly list of Pregnancy Memes – 10 Funniest Memes.
