Adlington Takes Baby Thea Swimming Amid Guilt Shaming

Rebecca Adlington was all smiles in sweet Instagram photos as she took her newborn daughter Thea Joy swimming for the first time on Friday. 

The former Olympic swimmer, 37, welcomed her third child Thea last month after suffering two heartbreaking miscarriages in the space of three years.

In a new update, Rebecca, who looked incredible in a black and green swimsuit, appeared keen for her baby girl to follow in her Olympic footsteps as she introduced her to the swimming pool. 

The star was joined at the pool by husband Andy Parsons, their two-year-old son Albie and her daughter Summer, eight, from her previous marriage with ex-husband Harry Needs. 

The two-time Olympic gold medalist also shared an adorable photo of her holding her baby girl ahead of getting into the pool. 

She wrote: 'Thea’s first swimming lesson. Loved our lesson this morning, one of us even fell asleep (spoiler it wasn’t me)'.

It comes days after Rebecca hit back at a mum guilt shamer who insisted they would 'never put themselves first' after making the choice to have a child. 

The newborn mum shared that she had treated herself to a manicure, but had been left struggling after Thea started crying. 

After trying to breastfeed one handed, Rebecca took to her Instagram to share how a lovely woman in the salon came over and helped look after Thea so she could enjoy a bit of pampering. 

She penned: 'Her kindness and taking time out her day was so lovely. I know it seems small but it's the first thing I've done for me in a long time. A huge thank you to her'. 

However some fans didn't focus on the kind side of the story, as Rebecca took to her Instagram Story to share one particular message she received. 

Claiming it was Rebecca's choice to have another child, the social media user wrote that 'kids should always come first' as she confessed she would have felt mum guilt if she were Rebecca. 

Sharing the message, Rebecca confessed it had made her sad as she spoke out against the unfair 'mum guilt' narrative. 

She penned: 'Yesterday I got this message after I posted about my nails. I wouldn't normally share this but it made me sad. 

'I didn't choose to have another child... WE chose to have another child. Why is it mum's feel guilty and not "we feel guilty". 

'I relate to this lady so much as I'm sure many of you do, but I want to be better at looking after you, you will be a better parent'.