Navigating marriage and parenthood in the public eye is “brutal” for Kristen Bell, she divulged in a new interview.
“It’s hard,” the “Nobody Wants This” star, 46, confessed to Bustle on Thursday. “Do not think because I am on your television that it is easy for me.”
Noting that she cries “weekly,” the actress told the outlet she turns to Dr. Becky Kennedy and Lisa Damour, Ph.D. for social media wisdom — and is intentionally vocal about her family’s struggles.
The Golden Globe nominee doesn’t want others with kids “in the cyclone of puberty” to think their little ones are “the only one doing this.”
Bell went on to tell the outlet her current approach to raising daughters Lincoln, 13, and Delta, 11, in the spotlight is a mix “between Kantianism and utilitarianism.”
She explained, “For the good of the people, we should share our dirty stories, we should share our shame, we should share our hardships. But for the good of the one? My main job in life is to protect those two.”
While she and Shepard, 51, shared “all the cute things” publicly when their girls were younger, “the equation has changed” now that Lincoln and Delta “could possibly be exposed to [media] or possibly have a feeling in response to” what their parents revealed.
“There’s someone else in the mix, and you have to have enough self-awareness and consideration to consider that person,” the “Good Place” alum added. “And that person is my daughter, so she’s No. 1.”
Bell has made headlines for a slew of confessions since becoming a mom in 2013, from giving them non-alcoholic beer to letting them use curse words.
In her sitdown with Bustle, she described how she manages her priorities as a working mom — primarily by not taking on projects that “pull [her] away from [her] kids too much.”
She said, “That’s really the No. 1, to be honest. There’s nothing higher than that. I would easily let my whole career and all its legacy and notoriety [disappear] tomorrow if it meant sacrificing something major in my kids’ lives, or not being there.”
Shepard, for his part, often discusses parenting tactics on his “Armchair Expert” podcast.
In November 2025, the actor explained to listeners that he and Bell are purposefully raising “entitled” and “disrespectful” daughters who are “unruly” and “talk back.”
He said, “I want them to always advocate for themselves, whether I think they’re right or wrong.”
As for Shepard and Bell’s marriage confessions, the latter recently made headlines for chatting about their “opposites attract” relationship to People.
“We did have to have a lot of patience for each other to figure out what the compromises would be, and a general understanding that we’re probably going to have different viewpoints on almost everything — and figure out a respectful way to have those discussions,” the Emmy nominee said in November 2025.
The couple have been married since October 2013, tying the knot at the Beverly Hills courthouse after six years together.
