Maryse Mizanin is getting candid about how becoming a mom has changed her approach to her career.
While speaking exclusively to PEOPLE at WWE’s Monday Night Raw in Los Angeles on Monday, Jan. 6, the retired pro wrestler and mom of two — who is married to WWE star Mike “The Miz” Mizanin — explains that while she misses wrestling in the WWE, being a parent “changes everything.”
“As much as we love what we do, the kids are now priority and number one,” Maryse, 41, tells PEOPLE. “So we have to prioritize them in every single aspect. … Especially as a woman, it’s difficult with two kids. I can’t travel the way [I used to] … And then I don’t want to.”
“I want to be there for my kids. And that’s what makes me happy,” she adds. “I want to go to bed at night and know that I’m in the same house as my kids, so as much as I love the business — I miss it — I choose my kids.”
Mike, who was also at the event, chimed in to share that becoming a dad to daughters Monroe Sky, 6, and Madison Jade, 5, shifted his perspective.
“I love my kids to death. And I try to find that healthy balance of fulfilling our dreams — but also because we want to show our kids if you have a dream, go after it and do what you have to do,” says the television personality, 44. “But you also have to be that parent and that dad.”
“To them, I’m not The Miz, I’m Dad,” he continues. “And Dad doesn’t get anything. It’s funny though, when people will come to me and ask for a picture, they’ll go, ‘Is that because you’re The Miz?’ They’re five and six and they’re already roasting me.”
Maryse has previously opened up to PEOPLE about parenting, noting that she and Mike are perfectly suited to entertain children because of all their experience with crowd work.
“We’re basically clowns. That’s our job,” she joked to PEOPLE in 2020. “We just are completely dedicated to them.”
During a separate conversation that same year, she revealed to PEOPLE that “mom guilt” is a very real phenomenon — though she didn’t realize just how much she would feel it until having kids.
“I’m with them all day, every day, but I sometimes feel like it’s never enough,” she said. “The mom guilt is really something that not many moms talk about. You leave your house for an hour and you feel guilty about it.”
“That’s something I wasn’t aware of before I was pregnant,” she explained. “I didn’t know women feel like this, and it’s crazy because a lot of my girlfriends tell me, ‘I feel the same way.’ I am basically taking care of my kids the best I can, love them as much as I can, give them everything and can [still] feel like that. It’s honestly very challenging.”
In addition to their wrestling careers, the couple gave fans an even bigger window into their lives via the fan-favorite reality show Miz & Mrs, which premiered on the USA Network in 2018 and ran for three seasons.
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While speaking to PEOPLE at the recent Raw event, Mike teased a potential new reality show featuring the pair.
“Well, I think we can’t really … We can tease it,” he says. “So maybe. Maybe you’ll hear about some things. Keep your eyeballs open for a new show with the Miz and Maryse.’
Raw airs live every Monday on Netflix at 8 p.m. ET.
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