Jennifer Garner Explains Why You Won’t See Her 3 Children on Instagram: ‘I Guard My Kids’ Privacy’

She may post occasional videos of her cooking or playing with her dogs, but when it comes to social media, Jennifer Garner will never post pictures of her children. The Peppermint star — who is the mom of Violet, 13, Seraphina, 10, and Samuel, 7 — recently opened up about the effects social media has on her three kids.

“It’s so gnarly to be a kid now. I guard my kids’ privacy as much as I possibly can, and I’ve never posted pictures of them on Instagram,” the 47-year-old beauty admitted to InStyle for the mag’s anniversary issue. “I used to refuse to say their names during interviews — but everyone knows their names! I would just say ‘my eldest,’ which I still do out of habit a lot.”

Jen even admitted that she finds herself struggling to share pictures despite the fact that they are getting older and more independent. “I’m sure there are times my kids would really love to see themselves reflected on my social media in a fun way and to have the attention they would get from that,” she said. “But I’ve fought too hard against it. It would feel hypocritical.”

The Alias star — who shares her three kids with ex-husband Ben Affleck — explained that choosing to not post photos of them online is the only source of normalcy she can hold onto. “There’s no implied judgment of people who do put their kids up there. I just don’t think most kids have been hounded in the way that mine were when they were little,” she explained. “We were completely hounded 24/7 for 10 solid years, and it changes you.”

The 13 Going on 30 actress, who joked that she “kicked and screamed” about “having to join” Instagram, also talked about the pressures that come along with social media. Jen said that although she is “grateful” she “didn’t have to deal with social media” when she was growing up, it’s still easy to get upset over society’s standards that are prevalent on Instagram and Twitter.

Luckily, Jen has a great support system of women around her. “Close female friendships are everything to me,” she gushed, noting that women in the industry have been so kind to her. “Feeling like part of a whole instead of thinking ‘Oh my gosh, I’d better hold on to my spot as tightly as I can or we’ll all be subsumed’ has been the hugest gift and the biggest game changer.”

We couldn’t adore Jen more even if we tried!