Nicole 'Snooki' Polizzi says being a mother is her "number one" priority right now and that is why she will not be returning to 'Jersey Shore'

However, Snooki has now made the decision to step back from the programme because her absences from the family home were having a negative effect on her kids, particularly her eldest son Lorenzo, seven, who was suffering with anxiety every time she went away to film.

And opening up about her exit, the television personality admitted that ultimately she need to be a full-time mom right now because her brood were really struggling with her being away from them.

Speaking to guest hosts Snoop Dogg and Martha Stewart on 'The Ellen DeGeneres Show' on Friday (07.02.20), Snooki - who also has five-year-old daughter Giovanna and seven-month-old son Angelo with her husband Jionni LaValle - explained: "There were a lot of decisions that went into that. I basically had to think about my kids and where I am at in life right now.

"It's been really, really hard for me to leave and film the show with three kids now."

Snoop replied: "I think mommy is the number one gig that she is thinking of right now."

And the brunette beauty agreed: "Mommy is my number one thing right now."

On her little boy's anxiety, the mother-of-three recently shared: "My son is seven. So when we came back from Miami, I was gone for two weeks, then I came home for a night and then left for another two weeks. That literally scarred him. So anytime I say 'Mommy's going to work,' he's like, 'Mom, you cannot leave me again like you did. I was so upset. I don't want you leaving.' So now every time I say I'm leaving for work, he goes, 'How long are you leaving?' It kind of gives him anxiety now. I can't do that anymore. They are definitely happy that I'm not going to be leaving for days on end now."

And Snooki was grateful that the show's producers were so understanding.

She said: "They know they can't change my mind, so everyone accepted it and they respected it. They were always very accommodating when it came to us and moms and working to also being with our kids."

Snooki also admitted she wasn't "happy" on 'Jersey Shore'.

She said previously: "I think when I was, like, actually forcing myself to be in a situation that I wasn't happy in. Like, I was forcing myself to be 'happy' and I'm like that's not me. I'm not genuinely happy. That's when I'm like. 'I'm out!' It was really hard but I had to think about my happiness and where I really wanted myself to be and it's being a mom and being kids and not drama and drinking and drama."