Nikki Garcia is revealing the lessons she learned in 2024 and maybe the reason why she and Artem Chigvintsev split up. The 41-year-old former WWE star shared her story on the Dec. 30 episode of podcast about the challenges she went through and how they will shape her in the new year.
Garcia, who settled her divorce from the Dancing With the Stars pro in late November, explained that she realized that she does not need “to fix, change or improve others” in her life.
“We aren’t here to fix other people, we just aren’t. We’re here to lead by example,” the reality star said. “We are here to teach our children, nurture our children, teach others — lead by example — but we are not here to fix. And it took me 41 years to realize that, and I’m definitely taking that into my 2025.” That advice could work for anything in a person’s life — parents, a work colleague, or a friend — but Garcia made it more personal. She added, “You can be there for support, but you aren’t there to fix, especially in relationships that you have.”
That’s when Garcia dug a little deeper and perhaps gave her listeners a hint about what went wrong with her two-year marriage to Chigvintsev. “If you’re in that kind of relationship that you are fixing, you need to find your way out because trying to fix someone isn’t going to bring love and happiness and change,” she continued. “You’re honestly, in the end, gonna drain yourself and just bring sadness.”
She admitted that the revelation hit her “really hard” because it’s the issue she’s unpacking in her personal life right now. Garcia’s “new era of me in 2025 is no longer fixing,” it’s about something very different. “I will lead. I will help. I will support. I will love, but I will not fix,” she summed up.
Now, Garcia is co-parenting son Matteo, 4, with her ex after a tumultuous breakup. On Aug. 29, Chigvintsev was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence at their Napa Valley home. The district attorney declined to press charges, but the damage to their marriage was done. On Sept. 11, Garcia filed for divorce. It looked like it was going to be an ugly fight, per the 42-year-old dancer’s legal response and their lack of a prenuptial agreement. But, cooler heads prevailed, and they quickly settled the divorce.
Yet her heart is still mourning the end of her marriage. “You dream of having this family, and you have this incredible love, and it just goes the other way,” Garcia shared on their Dec. 2 episode. “And you go from having a great love story to having a terrible one … never saw any of it coming, you know, as far as what the ending would be. I didn’t know that your heart can break that many times in such a short period of time.”
A better 2025 is ahead for Garcia!
Before you go, click here to see all the celebrity couples who allegedly don’t have prenups.
Leave a Comment