Busy Philipps is supporting her oldest child, Birdie, who is gay and uses they/them pronouns, the star recently revealed.
Philipps, 41, said on her podcast, "Busy Philipps is Doing Her Best," that she and Birdie, now 12, had first spoken about their sexuality when they were 10 years old.
"For those of you who are my friends listening at home, this is the first you're hearing that Birdie is gay and out," Philipps said. "Birdie told us at 10 years old and ... I mean obviously, I knew that Birdie knew."
It wasn't until more recently that Birdie spoke with their mother about their pronouns, which Philipps said she had been avoiding using in public in an effort to protect her child's privacy.
"Birdie said that they would like their pronouns to be they/them, and I haven't been doing it, and I said because I have this public persona, and I want Birdie to be in control of their own narrative and not have to answer to anybody outside of our friends and family if they don't want to," Philipps explained. "Bird was like, 'I don't give a f---. You can talk about how I'm gay and out, you can talk about my pronouns. That would be cool with me.'"
Philipps confirmed that she had gotten Birdie's permission to discuss their pronouns on the podcast, which she co-hosts with former "Busy Tonight" writers Shantira Jackson and Caissie St. Onge.
"I said, ‘OK, I can talk about it on the podcast?'" Philipps recalled. "And Birdie was like, ‘Yeah, talk about it on the podcast, Mom.'"
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When Philipps admitted that she does still "f--- up" her child's pronouns "sometimes," she is "trying (her) best at that."
"I love that kid, and this has been a f---ing wild year, and you know, I feel like I finally just really understand a lot of bigger things, life-wise," the "Dawson's Creek" alum added.
Philipps has one other child, 7-year-old daughter Cricket Pearl. She shares both children with her husband, screenwriter Marc Silverstein.
In 2018, Philipps told TODAY Parents that she tries to raise her children to be their authentic selves.
"My mother used to say the Shakespeare quote, 'And this above all, to thine own self be true,'" said Philipps. "I really feel like it permeated by being, so we really try to encourage our (kids) to just be true to themselves."