Brie Bella felt depressed and "lost [her] identity" after giving birth.
The 35-year-old retired wrestler admitted that she was confued in the months after she and her husband Daniel Bryan welcomed daughter Birdie, now two, into the world because she didn’t want to "lose" her old self but also knew she had to adapt to the changes in her personal life.
Speaking on ‘The Bellas Podcast’, she said: "I was a professional wrestler before Birdie.
"We had a really big career. The hardest thing for me was kind of when Birdie was born was kind of being like, ‘Okay, I’m a mom now,’ but I didn’t want to lose the old Brie, and I really did lose my identity…
"I really had a hard time with my identity."
Brie’s doubts led to her making her WWE comeback last summer but she felt she had "failed so bad" when she did.
She said: "I ended up making a comeback because I missed the old Brie and I failed so bad at it in front of the world."
The brunette beauty felt uncomfortable wearing spandex while still carrying "baby weight" and felt her body was "not ready" to be back in the ring.
She admitted: "I got bullied online for it — people would say, ‘Motherhood, look at what it’s done to her!’
"It was the first time I broke down so much … I couldn’t get those trolls’ voices out of my head.
"It made me realise, ‘Brie, the old you is gone. You gotta really figure out who you are today and WWE is the past.’ "
Her twin sister Nikki recalled how she couldn’t help Brie out of her depression.
She said: "I couldn’t say anything to her to make her happy or feel better. She couldn’t snap out of it."
The 35-year-old star eventually sought out a life coach to help her figure out who she really was.
She said: "It made me think … anyone out there who struggles with depression or does go through some hard times or feels a little lost — whether it’s with your identity or just with bullying — to reach out to someone.
"I was there and you want to be away from everyone — even my baby. I was just depressed."
Brie Bella lost her identity
