Jenna Bush Hager has admitted she finds Instagram “addictive” and is deleting the social media app from her phone in a bid to feel more like a “present mother” to her three young children.
During Thursday’s episode of Today with Hoda & Jenna, the 42-year-old revealed that she plans to follow in the footsteps of her twin sister, Barbara Pierce Bush, who recently deleted Instagram from her phone and hasn’t missed it one bit.
Jenna and her co-host, Hoda Kotb, were discussing wellness trends and the art of “going with the flow” when the mother of three opened up about spending too much time on her phone — something she sometimes struggles with.
“I have to say, this is the one thing that I think distracts me, and probably others, from getting into the flow… I bet you can guess,” she explained to Hoda, 60, as they both said in unison, “Stare down!”
Jenna continued, “Staring at your phone. Sometimes when I feel like something’s not right, if I’m honest with myself, it’s because I’ve spent too much time [on it]…,” Hoda replied, “I feel like I’ve actually been doing that more often lately.”
Jenna Bush Hager has admitted she finds Instagram ‘addictive’ and plans to delete the app from her mobile phone
Jenna pictured with her husband Henry Hager and their three children: Mila, 11; Poppy, nine, and five-year-old Hal
“Numbing!” Jenna said, before adding, “So when I feel like I’m not in the flow anymore, I take Instagram off my phone. My sister has been off Instagram for a while now… she’s still on it, but she took it off her phone.”
The former eldest daughter then admitted, “This is what I have to do to get rid of it… I have to get someone else to change my password because it’s addictive,” before referring to her sibling again.
“So she takes it off and says, ‘I haven’t had it on my phone and I feel like a present mother, like I’ve looked up, walked around and met friends, things that make you happy happen.
“And she said, ‘And I don’t miss anything, all the things it gave me just made me less happy,’ so I’m going to take it off today!” Jenna confirmed.
Hoda, a mother of two, says she also tries to “go with the flow” more, especially when she goes home after a day at work.
‘I walked home from here through Central Park and as I walked, I took deliberate steps. I slowed everything down, instead of walking somewhere, I kept walking, “one step, one step, one step,”‘ she explained.
“I felt like I was home in five seconds, it was the weirdest thing. I slowed it down because I read a book about walking slowly, so I tried it. I observed, I saw, it was a great walk home.”
Jenna responded, “It’s like, if you were listening to a podcast or music, which we always do, but if you weren’t really present, you wouldn’t be in the flow.”
Jenna revealed that her twin sister Barbara told her she felt “like a present mother” since deleting the Instagram app from her phone
Jenna admitted that when she feels like “something’s not right,” she knows she’s spending too much time on her phone
The TV presenter’s comments come just weeks after she shared her joy on Instagram at becoming an aunt again after Barbara had her second child.
“My little sister had a little boy and I’m head over heels in love with Edward Finn!” she captioned the post, which included an adorable photo of Jenna holding the newborn and bottle-feeding him.
In later photos, the sisters pose side by side with Edward, showing a close-up of his face as he is wrapped in a striped blanket.
Barbara already has a daughter named Cora with her husband Craig Coyne, while Jenna has three children with her husband Henry Hager: Mila, 11, Poppy, nine, and her five-year-old son Hal.
