Jessica Alba talks openly about how she decided to go to therapy for herself and her two daughters.
The mother of three, 42, has always been open about her family’s mental health concerns. Appearing on the cover of REAL SIMPLE’s first “Feelings Issue” for their January/February issue, the actress and entrepreneur recalls how she made the decision.
“Honor was probably 11, and we were fighting all the time about stupid things. And I said, ‘I don’t want to live like this. This is not fun,'” she shares.
“I didn’t want us to have a wedge between us. As her mother, when I say something, she will hear it as an argument or as if I’m trying to control her. I wanted there to be someone who could explain things in a way that I couldn’t,” continues Alba. .
“What I said to Honor was, ‘I want to be a better parent to you, and this is your forum to talk about anything that bothers you about what I do.’
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Jessica Alba.
Yu Tsai/REALLY SIMPLE
Jessica Alba’s Three Children: All About Honor, Haven and Hayes
Alba says that it wasn’t long before she and Honor began to see how therapy could help them.
“It put me in control. Like, ‘Yeah, I’m totally doing it. And I’m sorry. I’m going to work on it.’ It also gave her some perspective — that I’m not a villain; I’m just a parent,” the mom shares.
“She’ll come out the other side and I’ll still be here. I just wanted to get to that point and it worked,” she admits. “And the therapist allowed me to see that it’s natural for kids to disagree with their parents, and as a parent, he’s not always right or rational at the time.”
“I won’t introduce myself, it’s a process and I’m not perfect,” she concludes.
In addition to Honor, Alba shares Hayes (6) and Haven (12) with her husband Cash Warren (44).
In August, Alba posted pictures of her daughter’s return to school after the summer holidays. In the pictures, Honor and Haven were smiling next to each other as they posed for photos.”10. and the 7th — where did the time go… (sigh 💔) my girls’ first day of school! #momlifeisthebestlife #summerisofficiallyover #firstdayofschool,'” the actress captioned her Instagram post.
The January/February edition of REAL SIMPLE is on sale from January 19.
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education