A Russian mommy blogger’s attempt to launch her social media career took a devastating turn when she suffered a spinal fracture while trying to recreate Nicki Minaj’s famous stiletto pose from the “High School” music video.
Mariana Barutkina, based in Yekaterinburg, was just eight weeks postpartum when she decided to attempt the viral “stiletto challenge” that has been sweeping social media platforms. The challenge involves recreating Minaj’s iconic crouching pose while balanced on high heels, typically performed on elevated surfaces.
The video has since gone viral, and Barutkina can be seen precariously balancing on a saucepan and a canister of baby formula stacked on top of her kitchen counter. The makeshift platform proved unstable, and she lost her balance. Barutkina ended up tumbling backward onto the floor in what appears to be a painful fall.
The incident resulted in what medical professionals diagnosed as a compression flexion fracture to her spine. This type of injury occurs when the vertebrae are compressed and bent forward, often requiring significant recovery time.
Reflecting on the unexpected turn of events, Barutkina shared her thoughts on Instagram: “I decided to start a blog, my first content shoot — and here I am leaving the doctor’s. Irony? Karma? Or just life, which always tests our strength at the most unexpected moment.”
The video’s rapid spread across social media platforms caught the new mother by surprise. She later commented on the sudden attention: “Because of one video, which was unsuccessfully filmed, I woke up a popular person. More than 50 people sent me my reel from different publications today.”
Despite the severity of her injury, Barutkina has reassured her followers that both she and her newborn baby are safe and receiving proper care.
While the circumstances were certainly not what she had planned, the widespread attention from her mishap may ironically help launch the blogging career she was originally trying to establish. This unfortunate accident has turned into an unexpected opportunity for online recognition.