Why Drew Barrymore Wants To Be A Different Mother Than Her Own

While Drew Barrymore "wouldn't change a thing" about her previously complicated relationship with her mom, she intends to parent her children a little differently. Barrymore revealed on Demi Lovato's podcast how her mom Jaid acted more like a "friend" as opposed to a motherly figure. "I realized that her and I were friends, we were not parent and child, and therefore I had to completely relearn what parent-child dynamic is and I've been both inside of myself," she began. "I'm too adult and I'm too childish, where is the middle? Where is the balance? Where does this all land? And it took me a long time."

Barrymore grew up in the Hollywood spotlight, having been cast at just 6 years old in Steven Spielberg's epic film "E.T." But after scoring the role-of-a-lifetime, Barrymore's life filled with paparazzi and free handouts saw Jaid try to reap the rewards of having a famous daughter, per Yahoo News. The 46-year-old explained Jaid would do "some toxic s**t," like use her to get front of the line for clubs like Studio 54 on weekdays, which meant Barrymore regularly missed school. Barrymore's "crazy" lifestyle eventually saw her institutionalized for drug and alcohol addiction as a young teenager. Then at age 14, she got legally emancipated from her parents and moved into her own apartment.

Despite being estranged from Jaid for more than 20 years, Barrymore said they're "in a really good place" — but as mom herself now, recognizes more boundaries need to be set between parent and child. 

The "50 First Dates" actor explained on "4D with Demi Lovato" that since having kids, she's had some "amazing realizations" about her adolescence, particularly about how she didn't follow — let alone understand — rules. Drew Barrymore said, "I didn't have them growing up and when you're a parent, you try to compensate with so much love and you're almost afraid to get into the argument sometimes, you're just trying to survive the day, so you let things slide and you're like, 'Oh, there should have been a boundary in that place probably a while ago,' but I guess I'm only realizing that now."

Barrymore told Lovato that she's even had a blunt conversation with her two daughters, Olive (8) and Frankie (7), whom she shares with ex-husband Will Kopelman, about how she could "never be their friend." "Like, I'm your parent, I'm not your friend. You can be friendly and do activities, it's not that it has to be this strict relationship," she said, per People.

But despite clearly defining their relationship, Barrymore suggested the trio is extremely close, with her daughters being the first to know about her three Daytime Emmy nominations for her self-titled talk-show. "I told them they were the people that it mattered most that I got to tell, so it felt like a very whole moment," she said.