Pregnant Woman Defends Revealing Wedding Guest Dress from Critics (Exclusive)

One mom-to-be is defending her outfit choice after being criticized for going to a wedding in a plunging halter-neck dress.

Diana Lively, 28, didn’t expect to receive negativity online after choosing a dress that made her feel “beautiful, confident and comfortable.”

“Being pregnant — as I’m sure some other moms-to-be can agree — I often find it difficult to simply choose something to wear,” she tells PEOPLE. “The wedding was in an outdoor garden setting, the vibe was summer sunset, floral, ethereal, and whichever dress I chose needed to capture all of that. Ultimately, I was happy because I was certain it did just that.”

The dress, showcased in a series of TikTok videos, is light purple with a deep V-neckline, revealing some of her cleavage and growing baby bump. In one of her videos, Lively described it as “the best maternity, non-maternity dress on the market.”

People in the comment section, however, quickly insulted Lively for wearing the dress, despite her having shared a video stating that she had received permission from the bride to wear it.

“When I showed her the dress I was considering — the dress — she was genuinely excited and affirming, saying that she couldn’t wait to see my baby bump in it,” Lively tells PEOPLE, noting that the conversation came up during a bridal brunch.

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Commentators online, however, had their opinions with one calling the look “tacky, cheap and wrong.” Another person said, “You knew it was too much if you had to ask.”

A third comment said, “Girl NOBODY in the comments said anything about your body 😩😩🤣🤣🤣 the dress was inappropriate for ANYBODY at a wedding!!period!!!”

“The first wave of comments came from mutuals on TikTok — both from my personal and online community,” Lively tells PEOPLE. “I received a lot of compliments, especially on the dress’ cut and color. In the second wave, mostly non-followers, I was met with mild criticism — which I had no issue with. I even thought some of the comments were funny.”

She continues: “At which point, the tone shifted, as those comments created a platform for remarks that were much worse. The conversation descended into terrible scrutiny about my body, presumptions assassinating my character, baseless claims about my marriage and children, conjecture about the newlyweds, and even threats of violence.”

Lively says she “felt like a lot of people were projecting their insecurities onto me because they wouldn’t wear a dress like that and didn’t feel like I had the right to feel good or confident in it.”

“I felt the need to advocate for my body, my integrity, my husband and the bride. Seeing the avalanche of negativity, I was truly in fight-or-flight, but I had to stand up for what I knew to be true,” she adds.

While the situation sparked rumors online, including that she was dragged out of the reception after getting into an altercation with the bride’s mother, Lively has no regrets, as she has “a firm foundation in my self-identity.”

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“Thousands of strangers were telling me who they thought I was based on a few seconds of my life depicted in a couple of videos,” says Lively. “My husband, my family and my greater community kept me grounded in my character. My faith in God reminded me of the woman I am in real life.