Why Did Nicole 'Snooki' Polizzi Leave 'Jersey Shore'? She Wasn't Happy

No more gym, tan and laundry for Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi! The Jersey Shore star got candid about why she really decided to step away from the MTV hit series. “I think when I was, like, actually forcing myself to be in a situation that I wasn’t happy in. Like, I was forcing myself to be ‘happy,’ and I’m like, ‘That’s not me.’ I’m not genuinely happy,” the 32-year-old said during an appearance on The Mel Robbins Show, which will air in January 2020. “That’s when I’m like, ‘I’m out.’”

Even though the brunette beauty has been a main character since 2009, she is happy she decided to walk away from the cameras. “It was really hard, but I had to think about my happiness and where I really wanted myself to be,” she explained. “It’s being a mom and being [with my] kids and not drama and drinking … and drama.”

Jersey Shore Cast on the Red Carpet — Christopher Polk/Variety/Shutterstock

The reality starlet — who shares Lorenzo, 7, Giovanna, 5, and Angelo, 6 months, with her husband, Jionni LaVelle — announced that she would no longer be participating in filming anymore. “I am retiring from Jersey Shore. The main reason is really … I just can’t do it anymore,” she said on her podcast, “It’s Happening With Snooki & Joey,” which aired on December 6. “Literally, leaving my kids to film is really hard on me. I try and quit every single day. I just hate being away from the kids. I don’t like partying three days in a row. It’s just not my life anymore. I want to be home with the kids. It’s just really hard for me to leave the kids and film the show.”

The mom of three also admitted she is not into all of the drama that has been going on this past season. “Our show, Jersey Shore, is about family and making fun of each other and having a good time and laughing and just knowing that it’s all in good fun,” she added. “Lately, everything is so serious … It’s not about a team anymore. Fans are against one another when it comes to a cast member. I don’t want that.”

Recently, Snooki, Jenni “JWoww” Farley and Deena Cortese all gave bridesmaids speeches at Angelina Pivarnick’s wedding to Chris Larangeira, but apparently the jokes fell flat. “The audience at the wedding booed them,” a source told Us Weekly. “Their jokes were all in good fun, but they didn’t land and some didn’t think they were kind. Now, [Angelina] is not talking to them.”

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Nicole Snooki Polizzi With Her Children — Courtesy of Nicole Polizzi/Instagram

After Snooki’s big reveal, one fan couldn’t help but express how they felt about her leaving. “Great! New Jersey finally gets rid of her!” they wrote. However, the Chile native clapped back, writing, “I’m still here in Jersey and will always be. Come at me, bruh.”