Leighton Meester Laments About Society's Treatment of Moms: 'You're Not Doing Enough'

Leighton Meester isn’t afraid to talk about the challenges of motherhood, and she’s validly pointing a finger at society for admonishing women who are simply trying their best.

During a recent conversation for Interview Magazine with her husband, fellow actor Adam Brody, the Gossip Girl alum got candid on how her career has evolved since she gave birth to their two children.

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“It’s inevitable that it’s changed it, and we’ve had these conversations endlessly,” Meester began. “I wouldn’t change anything and I’m proud of the mom I am. But I also feel like I’m open to a lot of self-doubt and worry, and to more extreme hypervigilance and neurosis,” she shared.

The Country Strong actress continued, “All I can do is take it a day at a time. But when I’m with my kids, our kids, I feel like all I can do is be present. Then when I’m working, I miss them like crazy.” Meester admitted, “It’s hard not to feel as a mom that you’re not doing enough and I think that’s always going to be reinforced by our society.”

Mom shaming culture seems to be more prevalent than ever, thanks to the anonymity social media and technology have fostered in the digital sector. Even before modern advancements online, society has long attempted to oppress women, and shaming mothers for supposedly not being good enough is just another way to do so.

Meester pivoted to point out some of the best ways motherhood has changed her life. She told Brody, “I think that the sweet, canned answer is, it gave me a lot of compassion, and this whole other level of appreciation for other people and a sensitivity that I don’t think I ever had before. Particularly, when it comes to children,” The Roommate star said.

Meester has opened up about the difficulties of motherhood before, specifically touching on mom guilt during a 2022 interview with Entertainment Tonight. She chatted with the outlet about how hard it is to be away from her kids while working, confessing, “It doesn’t seem like it gets better [with time].”

The actress added, “I’ve been thinking maybe it would, but it doesn’t. And now I’ve really doubled up on this kid thing,” she said, referencing the addition of her then 2-year-old son. “So it’s kind of, it’s a double whammy of like, ‘Well, there’s a baby now and he seems like he needs me.'”

Meester continued, “Working is the ultimate guilt [because] I want to be here, I’m having fun. Of course, I think it’s good all around, but this world, our society, everything, it doesn’t really give us a lot of space for feeling whole on either end, and feeling good about going to work, or leaving our kids, or being with them. We can’t do that either,” she concluded.

After tying the knot in 2014, Meester and Brody welcomed their first child, a daughter named Arlo, in August 2015. The arrival of their son followed in 2020, and the couple has chosen to keep his name private in the years since.

Even when you’re famous, Mom Guilt is a thing, as these celebrity moms show.

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