Brooke Shields Shares Advice for Her Daughters About Aging

Brooke Shields is passing down words of wisdom to her daughters.

In a recent interview at the Forbes Power Women's Summit in New York City, the "Suddenly Susan" actor spoke with TODAY about how she is embracing her middle age and what she wants her daughters Rowan, 19, and Grier, 16, to know about getting older.

"Make the most out of every single chapter, because they're all unique for something different," Shields told TODAY. "Don't rush it, enjoy it — and don't try to be anybody else other than who you are.

"It's hard to find out who that is," she continued. "Listen to yourself."

The 57-year-old runs her own wellness company, Beginning Is Now, that provides support and a community for women over 40 to live their “fullest lives." However, Shields acknowledges that it took her a "really long time" to embrace aging the way she does now. She said she had to change habits she developed when she was younger.

“(I had to) unlearn making fun of myself in a way that could possibly become detrimental to me emotionally,” Shields recalled. “And it worked when I was younger, because I needed that. But that doesn’t work anymore.”

Shields believes that "the more experience you have, the more confident you grow" which leads to "enjoying your uniqueness" more and more. However, even knowing the benefits of getting older didn't prepare the actor for seeing her older daughter leave for college.

In August 2021, Shields shared an Instagram post summing up the day she dropped Rowan off at school with husband Chris Henchy and Grier in tow.

"This was the saddest drive away from anywhere I’ve ever had to make. But my baby is BEGINNING one of the most important adventures of her life to date…NOW!” Shields wrote.

Rowan's sophomore year drop-off also proved to be challenging for Shields, as she explained in an Instagram video posted on Aug. 18.

"Turns out second time is NOT the charm when it comes to your baby going off to college," she wrote. "Sophomore year, here she comes. I'll be crying if you need me... 😭❤️"

But when speaking with TODAY on the matter, she joked that she's got a good coping mechanism for years to come: "Just move on campus, just buy an apartment next door."

On a more serious note, Shields continued to say that "while it's sad for moms, it's also a moment of pride."

"You know that you're their mom, they're your baby, and that's never going to change."

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This article was originally published on TODAY.com