Brooke Shields Taught Her Daughters To Handle Negativity On Social Media

Brooke Shields works hard to keep the negativity at bay; especially when it comes to her daughters and social media. Social media can be known for being a roller coaster of positive and negative content and comments, and Shields has made sure to instill some fear of it into her two daughters, Rowan Francis Henchy, 19, and Grier Hammond Henchy, 16, with her husband, Chris Henchy.

During an interview with E! News, Shields, 57, explained the steps she took to help her daughters navigate social media positively. "I try to not preach too much. They have been privy to me as an example their whole lives," she said. "So rather than it being 'you should do this, you should do that,' if I'm faced with something, I speak to them about it." And while Shields has made it a habit to not read any of the comments on social media, her daughters do, and they tell her about it. "They'll say, 'Mom, it's amazing how nasty people can be.' That's a moment for a conversation rather than dictating to them," she explained.

A few years back, Shields talked about how she was handling her oldest daughter having social media and how she keeps tabs on it.  When Sheilds was a guest on Ali Wentworth's Shondaland podcast back in 2020, she revealed that she and her husband have access to their oldest daughter's social media pages. Their youngest didn't have any accounts at that time. "We have the power to turn it off for any reason," Shields explained regarding Rowan's social media. "I can't follow her. I have to follow her through another account just for security reasons. One of them is public and one of them is private." She went on to explain that she not only monitors her pages but also has full control over them. "At 16, we said, 'As long as we can still have control over it and as long as you don't post anything inappropriate, we will let you.' Now that she's in high school, her friend group has really opened up. We have it monitored all the time," Shields said.

Shields tried to instill some fear into the girls regarding social media and what's posted on it. "We have put the fear of God into them with regards to, 'Whatever you post doesn't go away,'" she said. "The words you choose have to be chosen very carefully."

Sheilds, the founder of Beginning Is Now, an online platform and lifestyle brand for women, leads her daughters by example as the two teens are watching their mom start a new career. "They're watching their mom navigate the world of business after having a certain type of a career and they're saying, 'Well, if she can do it, what do I want to do? I don't have to follow in her footsteps but what I can do is maintain a sense of self, stand up for myself, own my person and everything that that entails," she said. She also wants her girls to know that they don't need to fit a specific standing and can create their own. "Those conversations have to be ongoing, but they have to see me struggle and succeed or at least survive in the healthiest way possible," she explained. "They watch everything. They watch, they see everything. They're like little hawks." Shields hopes this mindset isn't only picked up by her daughters, but also by other women.