Jersey Shore’s Snooki Learns Why She Was Placed for Adoption as a Baby

Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi is facing previously untold family truths on Jersey Shore: Family Vacation.

Nicole, 37, and castmate Jenni “JWoww” Farley went searching for answers in the Thursday, June 5, episode of the MTV series. They contacted Nicole’s birth mother virtually and chatted with the assistance of a translator.

Nicole, who was adopted from Chile when she was a newborn, previously hadn’t known any specifics of her family history.

“For 36 years, I’ve been thinking about this question, and now the answer is going to pop up any second,” Nicole said in a confessional. “This is insane.”

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During the conversation, Nicole expressly asked, “Why was I put up for adoption?”

In response, her biological mother explained that she wasn’t ready to be a parent at the time.

“When she realized she was pregnant, she told her partner, your father, and he just disappeared, leaving her by herself,” the translator told Nicole. “She didn’t have any support at that moment, so that was the only option that she had. Even though it was painful, she had to let you go.”

Via the translator, Nicole’s biological mom also profusely apologized for “putting [the reality star] in that situation” in the first place. Nicole, meanwhile, stressed that she had an “amazing life” with her parents.

“Obviously, I wouldn’t even be here if she didn’t put me up for adoption,” Nicole told the cameras. “I have amazing parents. I had a great childhood. And then meeting my [Jersey Shore] roommates, and then meeting Jionni [LaValle] — and then having my kids.”

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Nicole and Jionni, 38, got married in 2014, four years after the OG version of Jersey Shore premiered on MTV. They went on to welcome sons Lorenzo, 11, and Angelo, 6, as well as daughter Giovanna, 10.

“[Your birth mom is] happy to know that you are a family now, and she’s very happy knowing that you were okay,” the translator added to Nicole. “She’s really happy she talked to you, and she loves you.”

Nicole previously told Us Weekly that it was “very emotional” learning about her family history on the show.

“It’s a lot and it’s still going on right now, so I’m excited for people to see that because I never really talked about my adoption and how I felt about it,” Nicole exclusively told Us in September 2024. “And it’s very emotional, so it’s a very vulnerable moment for me. I also wanted to do it because I know adoption’s a big thing that nobody talks about.”

She added, “There’s a lot of adoptees, and they have all these questions: ‘Should I reach out? Should I not reach out?’ So I’m glad that I got to show my side. It can be positive, and it’s comforting.”

Jersey Shore: Family Vacation airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET on MTV.