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Halle Berry reveals why she decided to show son's face on social media

"That was a struggle."
/ Source: TODAY

Halle Berry shares a lot with her fans and followers on social media, from work to workouts to glimpses of her personal life. But there's one part of her world that she prefers to keep truly private: her children.

Recently, however, the actress has relaxed her self-imposed policy to keep her kids' faces concealed in photos online, and now the Oscar-winning actress has opened up about why.

Berry has shared occasional, partially obscured snaps of daughter Nahla, 10, and son Maceo, 4, but last month, she posted a profile shot of her youngest on Instagram for the first time.

"That was a struggle," the 51-year-old star told Extra of her decision to do so. Ultimately, she added, she offered up the image as a gesture to her faithful fans.

"I really don't like to show my kids very much, but I do realize my people are solid for me — and me for them — and sometimes I feel like I want to include them," she explained.

She added: "It's a fine line because I don't want to exploit my children. I want to protect my children, so I thought, 'Half the face is good.'"

Still, even the glimpse of her son is a change of pace for Berry.

Back in 2016, after sharing a photo of her kids that revealed little more than their smiles, the actress faced criticism from one follower for cropping the shot.

"I've noticed you have said this several times now, so let me be clear — I'm not at all ashamed of my children," she wrote back in the comments section. "I try to find creative ways to incorporate them into my feed because they are the biggest part of my life, but I also work very hard to keep their identities as private as I can considering they are only children."

She went on to write: "It's my belief, and I'm not criticizing others who have different beliefs, that it's my job as their mother to protect their privacy as best I can. When they grow and they're of age and they want share their images on the internet, that will be for them to decide, not me."