Carmella, you have recently returned to WWE and graced us all with your presence.
But I think, I don't think, I know there's a lot going on in your life.
And we're all excited to catch up with you, and I'm sure the ATB listeners as
well as the rest of the WWE Universe have been wondering.
There's so many questions, where have you been?
What have you been up to?
Where is our princess of Staten Island?
>> Well, I'm back.
>> Yeah, I know that.
>> Hello, where was I?
Is that what you're asking?
>> Pay attention to your podcast partner.
It's a very valuable skill to learn.
>> I've been out I mean, I spent the last seven months away from WWE.
This is the longest time I've ever spent away actually.
Yeah, I had some time off and a couple,
some health issues going on that we've now moved on from.
I'm great, I'm healthy, I'm ready to go, but, yeah, it's been a crazy seven months,
to say the least.
>> Well, I know first hand what you've been dealing with,
because you are my wife, and we live under the same roof.
And occasionally, we get to spend time in the same city as one another.
But I know you've been open and honest about it.
While you were away via your social media which you do your best to keep in touch
with everybody on those platforms.
But for those who may not be familiar what went down.
I know this is something very, very important to you to speak about and
you had a lot of time to deal with and wrap your head around it.
And I know before he invited you on here,
you said you were going to be comfortable sort of shining a little light on that for
the listeners who may get something important to take away from it.
>> Yeah, so I was dealing with an ectopic pregnancy,
which means that the pregnancy was not viable, couldn't move forward with it.
And it's actually something that you and I both were learning together is very,
very dangerous.
It's something that a lot of women actually don't make it through.
So I feel very fortunate that I've, yeah, and that's what's so
crazy is because you know my friends family.
No one realized just how extreme this is my husband included [LAUGH].
>> Myself have included and
this has been something we've had multiple discussions about.
Because in the moment, I had heard, I'd heard the phrase ectopic pregnancy.
I Googled it, I got a definition for what it was, but I had no idea even as your
husband, as your partner, this was my pregnancy as well, you know what I mean?
And I didn't realize the magnitude of what that is.
And I know you have done a lot of work and a lot of research, and
you've connected with a lot of people on this subject.
And it turns out it's a relatively common thing that a lot of people deal with.
But sometimes aren't necessarily open to talking about.
>> Yeah, I guess I wouldn't say it's common,
it actually happens to 6% of pregnancies which is crazy to think about 6%.
But basically, what happens is I'm just so grateful I listen to my body.
There was a moment where I wasn't sure what's happening,
my stomach was killing me.
I asked you to take me to the emergency room or in the emergency room.
>> And I'm not proud of this now, but
she asked me to take her to the emergency room, and I went, why?
I didn't get it, because this is maybe to your point, it's not that common.
And in hindsight, I realized like, man, I have never screwed up that bad.
But in the moment, it was just like,
I didn't understand what we were dealing with.
>> I know, but I think in that moment it's very difficult to go, sure, absolutely,
let's go, right?
And I know that may seem like the right thing to do for everybody listening.
But if my wife said to me, I need to go to the emergency room right now, I'd want to.
I'd have a million and one questions, of course.
So how did you process all you were going through?
>> It was, gosh, it was so difficult,
because once it happened, I'm in the emergency room.
I actually had to take an ambulance to another emergency room for
them to continue to diagnose exactly what had happened.
And once I realized that it wasn't, in fact,
an ectopic pregnancy, which means it's in your, not to get super technical.
But it's in your fallopian tube, not in your uterus.
So at any point, basically, it can explode and you can bleed to death
which is insane to think about, but- >> Don't don't gloss over that.
>> [LAUGH] >> This is what really rocked me,
this is when I went, my god, I need to be a better partner.
I need to be more supportive, I didn't realize I thought,
hey, it was something that you get fixed and you may need to get surgery, or
something, or something that your body just recovers from.
When I found out you could have died, that rocks my world.
>> Yeah, it's insane, because not only am I in the emergency room for
this crazy medical condition, we have to monitor very closely.
I was on bed rest for four weeks straight, I couldn't do anything.
But then I'm also processing the loss of our baby.
It was a double whammy.
So I just think through all of that, when we made it through and I'm so so
grateful and I'm not trying to gloss over any of this as if it was.
I mean, I was in a deep depression for a while, it was really hard.
But I felt like it was necessary for me to share my story, because I felt,
even though I had you, I had my family.
I've never felt so alone, because it's kind of like blaming yourself,
what did I do wrong?
How could I have prevented this?
But turns out there's nothing I could have done.
It's just how your body reacts and women came out of the woodwork.
That's why I wanted to share my story, because I was so lonely and I felt so
isolated through the experience.
And I felt like if I'm going through this, surely, there are other women out there or
men out there who are helping their wife, or partner, or daughter, or
anyone going through that.
And I just really wanted to share my story,
because women came out of the woodwork.
Women from my high school, my college,
even women that I've met through here in WWE have come to me and said, wow.
I went through this or I know someone who went through this and
I wish I had the courage to share my story.
And that's mostly what I wanted to do with coming out with it publicly.
Because it's not talked about enough, women don't talk about these things.
It's, you're talking about you're pregnant, you think you're pregnant and
you're having a baby and that's it.
And I was excited to have a baby, and then it's all taken away.
And it was just a very difficult time and
it felt my return was such up in the air.
I didn't know, am I ever gonna go back to work?
Am I ever going to feel okay?
Am I ever gonna feel good enough to get off this damn couch and
put some makeup on my face and feel good about myself?
And luckily, we're here, we're on the other side, but
it was definitely difficult journey.
>> Talk to us a little bit about the emotional journey back to where.
Again, not to put all your business out there, but you had questions,
you had doubts.
You didn't know, A, physically if you're going to be able to get back in the ring
and compete at the level that we all know you were used to.
And B, you were sort of questioning your place in the world at the time.
>> For sure, I just kind of reimagined everything like,
what is my purpose after going through this?
I was so confused, and so I had mentioned I was on bed rest for
at least four weeks, people don't realize once you go through it.
You have to wait until your body can recover.
Cuz at any moment, it can still explode, so
you have to wait until everything is back to normal.
And so I'm grateful for it at the now looking back,
because I had to just deal with it.
I had to be in it and I went through all of these different thought processes.
Am I gonna go back to work?
What is there for me at work?
Is putting my body through all of this worth it?
And I just wasn't quite sure what that journey back to the ring would look like,
I have to get back in the ring.
I hadn't been able to even, for me, I'm someone who's in the gym on a daily basis.
I'm constantly in Pilates, yoga, fitness classes.
Sometimes twice a day, I couldn't do any of that for a couple months.
So what I even be able to get my body back to where it needed to be,
just even walk on a treadmill again or ride a bike again.
I had no idea how long it would take me to get back to that.
So, yeah, I wasn't quite sure what it would look like to get back to WWE.
And people even gonna remember me?
Are people are gonna want to see me back.
What does that journey looked like and now, looking back,
I wouldn't have changed a thing.
I feel it really helped me take the time I needed to mentally and
physically to get back into peak physical and in-ring condition.
>> You mentioned being lonely though and
you also mentioned the mental aspect of this.
For a lot of people listening both male and female right now,
that may be feeling that.
What did you do to turn that corner to try and become yourself again?
You've mentioned yoga and Pilates, anything else you'd recommend?
>> Yeah, I did a lot of acupuncture actually.
My acupuncturist also kind of doubles as a therapist.
He talks a lot about mental well-being and he's really helped me a lot through.
I do a lot of meditation and honestly,
just the support system of having my family.
I'm so grateful that my parents live here in Pittsburgh now.
My husband, my stepkids, they were all so
integral in the process of getting back to where I needed to be.
And I think if you have a great support system,
then you can kind of get through anything.
>> So the Monday Night Raw that Carmella returns,
and we couldn't wait we were so excited.
And you obviously, the shows are much better when Carmella is on them.
You talked about the trepidation of arriving to the arena even.
I'd imagine you were nervous, but what about walking through the curtain again?
>> I'm gonna back up a little bit KP,
just cuz I wanna ask you about to his point the trepidation of coming back.
The entire landscape in WWE is drastically different than it was
when you went away eight months ago or in August of last year.
From the talent to who's running to just the over, I mean, it's a different world.
So what did that feel like knowing you were coming back into the fire,
but it was gonna be very different?
>> Yeah, I had no idea what to expect.
I knew how things were running, how things went.
When I was there before, but everything had changed to your point,
the locker room was different, the management is different.
How am I gonna fit in?
How are they gonna view me?
How am I going to come back?
Am I gonna come back and be remembered, and do what it is that I like to do or
was it gonna be completely different?
So I'm so grateful that I'm able to return to the moonwalking trash talking
princes of Staten Island.
For me, it's so near and dear to my heart, I created this character in NXT.
It is me, it's part of me, it's me just turned way up and I feel so
confident and comfortable in this role.
So to be able to be given the opportunity to go back to what brought me to the dance
to begin with.
I'm just so grateful and I'm so excited.
I've never felt more comfortable.
I don't have to think about anything, it's just me.
I can just be and perform.
And to your question earlier, Kevin, to come out through that current,
I hit the damn moonwalk.
I heard the F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S, a little mixed up with my new song.
So it's kind of like the best parts of the old Carmella, the best of the new
Carmella and mash it all up together and I am just, I'm thriving.
I'm so excited [LAUGH].
>> If you could summarize your WWE journey in one,
I am affirmation, what would it be and why?
>> I am proud, I'm so proud of myself, I'm gonna cry again.
Today is an emotional day.
I'm so proud of myself.
I feel like I've been overlooked and underestimated from the beginning.
I came from dance, I didn't have a history with wrestling.
I wasn't on the independence, I was a small girl.
How am I gonna do it?
How am I gonna get my butt kicked and be able to walk and
not complain about being bruised and cut up and everything?
And I think I spent two years in NXT and
I had already debuted on the main roster and I did it in great form.
I had amazing rivalry with Nikki Bella.
I was on TV every week.
I was the very last draft pick.
No one expected me to do anything with my career.
And I think again, going back to our earlier conversation.
It lit a flame under me and it made me realize how much I wanna prove to
everybody that I am a mainstay in this division.
I will always have a name in this company.
No matter what, I'll always go down in history, and I'm so grateful for
the journey I've had and I'm so proud of myself.
I'm so proud.
[MUSIC]
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