Tori Spelling Comments on Posting Photo of Son Beau, 7, Giving Her a Massage: 'Don't Need People Shaming Me' - PEOPLE

[Hannah Sacks]

Tori Spelling is clarifying why she posted a photo of her son Beau giving her a massage in exchange for an allowance.

On this week's episode of her podcast misSPELLING, the actress, 51, cleared up why she recently posted a photo on her Instagram Stories of her 7-year-old son Beau massaging his mom's legs as she lay nude on a table with a blanket covering her lower half.

"So on my Stories recently, I posted what I thought was a very cute photo of my 7-year-old son Beau, pretending being the keyword, pretending to give me a massage," Spelling began.

"And then I said he wanted to make money for an allowance, and I thought this was a good way to start. Beats chores, something like that. I don't know. Solid plan."

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Spelling explained that she brought her son to the massage parlor with her, where her son asked if he could help work on her back. "So [the massage therapist] took that one picture of Beau pretending to give me a massage. And I just think it's wild. It's wild the stuff that you can put out there that they change the narrative on so hardcore."

The mom of five said she decided to post the photo and was surprised when it "exploded" in the press — even though one of her friends responded to her photo and tried to steer her in another direction.

"I mean, as soon as I put it up, one of my best guy friends, he DM'd me and he was like, 'That's not a good look.' And I'm like, 'I know. I like joking,' " Spelling said. "I'm like, 'I know. He was getting all the wrong spots. Like, you should have started on the feet.' But he said, he's like, 'Oh my god. People are gonna freak out.'"

"I said, 'Why? It's a cute photo. Everyone knows it's not real. Clearly, we are not at home. I'm not making him do chores,' " Spelling continued. "Clearly, I'm at a massage parlor."

The podcaster said when the photo started to get traction online, she was talking to one of her mom friends, who affirmed that she also thought the post was totally normal.

"I think it's interesting though, that, I don't know, on social media, why is it like comedians can post anything?" Spelling asked. "Comedians that have families, kids, they can post anything and people are like, 'They are kidding. That's funny.'"

"But if an actor posts something like, oh my god. That must be true. She's a horrible mom," she went on. "And then I had another friend that was like, 'Well, good news is you're relevant. You're in the press.'"

However, Spelling said she has such "mom guilt" already, she doesn't want to have to hear it or see it on the Internet, too.

"I don't need people shaming me, thinking I'm forcing my kids to massage me," she added.