Kristen Bell is opening up about the emotional toll of raising two daughters through puberty while maintaining a high-profile marriage.
The “Nobody Wants This” star, 46, told Bustle in an interview published Thursday that she cries “weekly” as she navigates family life with husband Dax Shepard, 51, and their daughters Lincoln, 13, and Delta, 11. “It’s hard,” she confessed to the outlet. “Do not think because I am on your television that it is easy for me.”
Bell has become increasingly deliberate about what she shares publicly as her children have grown older. She and Shepard once posted “all the cute things” about their girls, but she explained that “the equation has changed” now that Lincoln and Delta could encounter those stories themselves or form reactions to them. “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.”
The actress described her parenting philosophy as existing “between Kantianism and utilitarianism.” She elaborated on that balance in her Bustle interview:
“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.”
Shepard has offered his own unfiltered perspective on their approach. During a November 2025 episode of his “Armchair Expert” podcast, he told listeners that he and Bell are intentionally raising “entitled” and “disrespectful” daughters who are “unruly” and “talk back,” He continued, “I want them to always advocate for themselves, whether I think they’re right or wrong.”
Bell seeks guidance from social media voices including Dr. Becky Kennedy and Lisa Damour, Ph.D., and she makes a point of being vocal about her family’s difficulties so other parents don’t feel alone. She told Bustle she doesn’t want others with kids “in the cyclone of puberty” to think their children are “the only one doing this.”
Career decisions now revolve almost entirely around her children’s needs. “That’s really the No. 1, to be honest,” she said of avoiding projects that pull her away too much. “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.”
The couple’s marriage has required similar navigation. Bell, a Golden Globe nominee, discussed their “opposites attract” dynamic with People in November 2025, explaining that patience and compromise have been essential. “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.
Bell and Shepard wed at the Beverly Hills courthouse in October 2013 after six years together. She has built a public persona around candid motherhood revelations since 2013, previously making headlines for allowing her daughters non-alcoholic beer and permitting them to use curse words.
Bell and Shepard continue to co-host their “Noone’s Listening” podcast together.