Pregnant YouTuber Colleen Ballinger Addresses Fans Who Are Upset She Won’t Hug Them

YouTuber Colleen Ballinger, the mastermind behind wacky character Miranda Sings, is smack in the middle of her …No Offense tour, and also recently shared the happy news that she’s four months pregnant. According to Ballinger’s new vlog, however, some fans are less than happy with her decision not to hug at meet-and-greets throughout the duration of her pregnancy.

In a new video (below), Ballinger addressed the criticism head-on, explaining that after throwing up at a tour event, she became concerned about her health and checked in with her doctor, who recommended that she avoid hugging kids as well as anyone who’s sick. The star decided to put a mortatorium on all hugs because bloodwork revealed she’s “not immune to some very serious illnesses,” and people can’t be sure if they’re carrying a virus, she said.

“There’s a lot of you who are very supportive and very understanding,” Ballinger explained. “But there are people who are really upset that I’m not hugging all my fans when I meet them. [They say] that I’m being overdramatic.”

To this end, Ballinger revealed that the issue hits close to home. After her mother got sick while she was pregnant, Ballinger’s brother was born hard of hearing, and has “had a lot of problems learning and progressing and just functioning,” she shared. “So please, don’t tell me I’m being ridiculous or overdramatic when I say I can’t get sick when I’m pregnant. [A hug] might just be two seconds to you, but it is the life of my child.”

Ballinger’s statements highlight the occasionally difficult relationship between creators and fans, where, particularly in the age of social media, creators can sometimes be expected to share every bit of themselves with viewers.

Ballinger — and Miranda, of course — will be on tour through Sept. 22. Ballinger has also said she’ll be vlogging her pregnancy, so fans have plenty more updates about her future kiddo to look forward to.