"I was so depressed," "Put on weight" - Released WWE star reveals personal struggles

A released WWE star has revealed personal struggles during her time in the Stamford-based promotion.

Former two-time NXT Women's Tag Team Champion and Toxic Attraction member Priscilla Kelly (FKA Gigi Dolin) recently opened up about her mental state and battle with depression during her WWE stint.

The erstwhile Dolin joined WWE in 2021 and was released earlier this year in May. In an interview with Ringsiders Wrestling, she reflected on the emotional toll her time in NXT took on her toward the end of her tenure.

"Somewhere toward that last year of being with Toxic Attraction, I went through, like, a really bad depression for various reasons behind the scenes, but I went through a really bad mental state where, like, I wasn’t myself anymore. I didn’t feel like myself. I felt lost. I felt very stagnant. And you know, I put on weight, and I stopped caring about how I looked in the ring because I was so depressed," she said.

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The Georgia native said that although she is thankful for the opportunity she got, she couldn't help how she felt and struggled with her mental health. The former NXT Superstar mentioned that her deteriorating mental health affected her work as well.

"And it showed in my work. It showed in my body. It showed in my mannerisms and everything. And I lost a big part of myself during that chunk of time,” she added.

You can watch the interview below:

Gigi Dolin had a strong run in WWE NXT

After signing a deal with World Wrestling Entertainment in 2021, the erstwhile Gigi Dolin participated in the Women's Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic. She teamed up with Elayna Black (FKA Cora Jade), losing in the first round.

Shortly afterward, she joined Mandy Rose and Jacy Jayne to form Toxic Attraction. While Rose continued to be in singles competition, the Georgia native and Jayne won the NXT Women's Tag Team Championship at Halloween Havoc.

They would win the title one more time before dropping the gold to the erstwhile Cora Jade and Roxanne Perez. Following the release of Mandy Rose, Toxic Attraction became a tag team.

However, Jayne and the 28-year-old soon started feuding with each other, leading to a trilogy of matches. She continued to thrive in singles competition and also formed a team with Tatum Paxley. She was eventually released from WWE on May 2 this year.

If you use quotes from this article, please credit Ringsiders Wrestling and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.

About the author

Sherjeel Malik is a writer at Sportskeeda and covers pro wrestling. He was hooked on the product from the moment he saw The Hardy Boyz jumping off ladders during the Attitude Era. While he comes from an engineering background, Sherjeel’s love for pro wrestling and content writing led him to pursue a career in sports journalism. Before assuming his current role at Sportskeeda, Sherjeel worked at other reputable organizations for five years.

While writing articles, he ensures that he only relies on credible sources for information and covers relevant subjects that do not project an agenda against a particular person or association. WWE legend Paul Heyman once shared Sherjeel’s work on his social media handle.

Sherjeel’s earliest memory of pro wrestling is watching Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Undertaker square off for the WWE Title in the main event of a pay-per-view in 1998. His favorite wrestlers are Randy Orton and Jeff Hardy. While he admires Orton for his character work as a heel, he looks up to Jeff because of his unique wrestling style and risk-taking ability.

If he could go back to the Attitude Era, Sherjeel would like to manage Ken Shamrock and be his mouthpiece. He feels Shamrock’s promo skills prevented him from becoming a main event-level act in WWE. Hence, he would like to help the UFC Hall of Famer get over with fans.

When not writing about pro wrestling, he likes to read classics and fiction books.

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Edited by Sherjeel Malik