Denise Richards faces dating challenge

May 13, 2010, 16:37 GMT

Denise Richards finds dating "challenging".

The actress - who has daughters Sam, six, and Lola, five, with ex-husband Charlie Sheen - admits it is difficult to combine the needs of her children while having a personal life.

She said: "Dating is very challenging. I won't introduce my kids to anyone I'm dating unless it's very serious. And balancing everything - my daughters always come first. I will never get these years back with my girls!"

The 39-year-old star also revealed she regards infidelity as the "ultimate betrayal" and can't understand why people cheat on their partners.

Speaking about her latest movie role in 'Mother's Little Helpers', she told Babble.com: "My character in 'Mother's Little Helpers' is very entertaining; she's always got a cocktail in her hand, loves a good time, and isn't happy in her marriage so she goes elsewhere. I don't care how bad things are in my relationship - I would never have an affair. That's the ultimate betrayal. I'm a bit of a free spirit and love life, and I think that's what my character and I have in common."

Although Denise loves being a working mother, she also enjoys being able to switch off away from her family and even gets out of bed extra early to get some time alone.

She added: "I work out at 5.30 am so I can have that quiet hour before waking the girls for school. I recently went with a couple girlfriends to a hotel. We had massages, ate dinner, spent the night, then had breakfast and headed home - it was awesome! My dad watched the girls so I didn't have to worry. Little things like that make a difference."