Natalya says needing a ‘mental reset’ led to WWE absence
Natalya has commented on what led to her recent three-month absence from WWE programming.
The 42-year-old returned to the company on WWE Raw this week as the mystery partner of Zelina Vega and Lyra Valkyria in a win over the Pure Fusion Collective. It was her first match since the June 4 edition of NXT.
Natalya revealed on Growing Up Von Erich with Kristen & Hollie Von Erich yesterday that there were multiple reasons for her absence, including needing a “mental reset,” eye surgery, and a couple of secret projects she’s been working on.
“I took a little time off this summer and the company was so great about it,” she said. “They were like ‘Take as much time as you need.'”
“It’s really changing so much in the best way and the culture is so different now. Like, our boss, Triple H, he is such a cool boss. I just recently got eye surgery to correct astigmatism in my eye and I needed a little bit more time off to get that done. He’s like, ‘Go get your eyes fixed.’ He’s like ‘Don’t even worry about it, go take care of yourself.'”
She later added:
“I had my last match in June so it was not even three months but I took a little break because I was like, I need a little mental reset. Like, I just need some time to regroup, recalibrate, refocus. Again, it was for my mental health because it’s one thing to be healthy and fit on a treadmill, or you look great, or you got abs, but if your head isn’t right, you can’t do any of the fun stuff.”
Natalya also mentioned during the conversation that she has been working on a few projects related to the Hart family history of late.
“I’ve still been sworn to secrecy about it so I won’t give out spoilers but there’s two different things that I’m working on and again, it’s about keeping the Hart family name alive,” she said.
Elsewhere in the conversation, Natalya discussed the shared history between the Hart and Von Erich families, which, unfortunately, includes a lot of tragedy.
“I still think to this day it would be so cool if Owen was still here and he could help me or we could talk about wrestling,” Natalya said. “And I know you guys probably feel that same way too about your family. Like, it would be so cool to be able to bond with them and share your hopes and dreams and fears and the goods and the bads of life. But, I think about Owen every day. It was just a really, really hard time for our family but I love that he is being celebrated. His wife Martha, his son Oje, and daughter Athena, they are doing everything they can to keep his legacy alive.”
Other topics discussed between Natalya and the Von Erichs include Stu Hart training Fritz Von Erich in the dungeon, Natalya being Lacey Von Erich’s first opponent, and more.
The full interview is available below:
Ian Carey is a writer from Toronto, Ontario, Canada, whose work has been featured in NOW Magazine, The Huffington Post, and more. A lifelong wrestling aficionado born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, he has covered the industry for a decade and a half. He joined the f4wonline.com team in 2019.