- Ashley Tisdale (Ashley Tisdale French) wrote a first-person piece about leaving a toxic mom group.
- She describes the dynamic as a return to “high-school” mean-girl behavior and says it made her rethink the example she sets for her daughters.
- The essay prompted wide response: DMs from other parents and a surge of online conversation.
- Tisdale says it’s okay to walk away from groups that harm your mental health; she linked her longer reflection on her personal site.
H2: Ashley Tisdale details why she left a mom group
In a first-person essay published on Jan. 1, 2026, Ashley Tisdale (credited in the piece as Ashley Tisdale French) wrote about walking away from a mom group that turned toxic. What began as a search for camaraderie after the birth of her first daughter—practical talk about diapers, sleep and routines—morphed into a fraught social dynamic she likened to high school.
Tisdale says the group’s conversations went from logistical to personal. Instead of support, she found exclusion, gossip and subtle power plays. The experience, she writes, left her questioning not just the friendships themselves but the example she was setting for her children.
H3: From small talk to “mean-girl” dynamics
The actor and producer explained that the moments that felt small—snubs, side conversations, and implicit ranking—accumulated until the group felt unsafe. Tisdale describes the sensation as being “back in high school,” where cliques and performative kindness replaced genuine connection. She told readers that what started as mutual need for adult conversation turned into emotional labor and stress.
H3: A surge of responses and a backup essay
After the piece ran, Tisdale’s phone “blew up,” she writes, with DMs from other mothers who said they felt seen. The essay also drove readers to her own site, where she had posted a longer reflection titled “You’re Allowed to Leave Your Mom Group.” That post offered a more in-depth look at why leaving can be healthy and how to do it without guilt. Read it here: https://byashleyfrench.com/blogs/the-journal/youre-allowed-to-leave-your-mom-group
H4: Why this matters to parents
Tisdale frames her decision to step away as part of a larger responsibility: teaching her daughters to stand up to exclusion and mean-girl behavior. She explains that modeling boundaries is as important as instructing kids to speak up. For parents who’ve stayed in draining social circles out of obligation, Tisdale’s essay is a reminder that choosing well-being can be an act of parenting.
H5: The takeaway
Tisdale’s message is simple and direct: you don’t have to tolerate social dynamics that make you feel small. Whether you’re a public figure or a new parent in your neighborhood, she argues, leaving a toxic group is not a failure but a boundary-setting choice. Her piece sparked broad conversation among parents online, proving the subject resonates far beyond celebrity life.
For readers who want the full essay, Tisdale’s piece appears at The Cut and on her Substack/blog linked above.
Image Referance: https://www.thecut.com/article/ashley-tisdale-french-mom-group-mean-girls-parenting.html
