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Was Snooki Adopted? Nicole ‘Snooki’ Polizzi’s Adoption Story
Before she was doing the Jersey Turnpike at the club, Snooki was a happy kid growing up as an only child with Helen and Andrew Polizzi in Marlboro, New York. Many Americans know and love Snooki from MTV’s “Jersey Shore,” but the lesser-known story is her birth and upbringing. Because of the hit reality show’s Italian American vibes, most viewers connect Snooki to her adoptive family’s Italian roots. If you have ever wondered, “Was Snooki adopted?” You are about to find out the full story.
Nicole Polizzi’s Early Life
Nicole Polizzi was born on November 23, 1987, in Santiago, Chile. As the reality star has shared of her past, her parents adopted her when she was just 6 months old.
“They flew all the way to Chile to come pick me up and they said right when they saw me, they said I was like, ‘Mama, Dada.’ So, it was meant to be, things just work out that way — it’s called fate,” Polizzi explained.
Snooki did not open up about her adoption story until she was about 30 years old.
“I don’t really talk about it just because I just feel like my family is my family,” Polizzi said in a YouTube video about her adoption story.
“I never really thought, ‘What’s my birth mother like? What’s my birth family like?’ Because I’m so content with my adoptive parents and my adopted life and family. But you know I thought about it once I started getting older, like, ‘What does my mom look like? What does my dad look like?’” she said.
“I was always meant to be with my adoptive parents, which I don’t even… I hate saying adoptive parents because they are my parents, it’s weird,” she said. “Even though my nationality is Chilean, I grew up Italian [American]. So, when people say to me what’s your nationality I say, ‘I’m Chilean but I grew up Italian [American].’ I feel like I’m both.”
Snooki started to have questions about her adoption story when she was a teenager.
“[My parents] didn’t have to sit me down at 10 and be like, ‘Nicole, you’re adopted.’ I knew we don’t look alike. I’m brown, you’re white. This doesn’t make sense, but I always knew in my heart that I was adopted, and I was totally fine with it,” she shared. “I would say once I was 16, 17, I started to think, ‘Why didn’t my birth parents want me? What do they look like? Do I have any brothers and sisters?’ Because I grew up an only child, I always wanted a brother or sister to grow up with.’”
She may have also felt that she could not talk about it with her parents, who did not seem to want to discuss the matter.
“Every time I ask my parents they would get upset,” she recalled. “I could just tell they would get upset because they didn’t want to tell me the truth or they didn’t want me to think that they’re not my parents, which was never the case. Eventually, when I was 21, 22, I [went to my dad] and was like, ‘Dad, can you just tell me what went on? Why was I up for adoption?’”
Her father explained that her birth parents had other children, and they could not afford to raise another child.
“I can’t even imagine because I have two kids, putting up a child for adoption, to give them a better life,” the MTV star shared in her video. “That’s so amazing for them, that shows how much they loved me… I can’t even imagine how they felt giving me up but thank you for that.”
Snooki also shared in the YouTube video that she is interested in meeting her birth family someday.
“I always wonder if I never was adopted and I stayed with my birth parents would I still be a hot mess like this? Just in Spanish, probably. I feel like I was always meant to be this hot mess.”
Finally, Getting Answers
Snooki finally learned more about her birth mother and the reason she was placed for adoption while filming the latest season of “Jersey Shore: Family Vacation.”
In an episode that aired on June 5th, Snooki – with the help of an investigative genealogist and DNA expert – contacted her birth mother and had a virtual call with the woman. With the help of a translator, Snooki learned she was placed for adoption due to a lack of support. The birth mother explained that once she told the birth father about the pregnancy, he disappeared, leaving her alone. Without the means to raise the baby herself, she made the heart-wrenching decision to place her baby for adoption.
“When she realized she was pregnant, she told her partner, your father, and he just disappeared, leaving her by herself,” the translator explained. “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.”
Through tears, the birth mother profusely apologized and asked Snooki if she was angry. Snooki gave a heartfelt “No!” and had the translator explain that she had had a wonderful life.
“Obviously, I wouldn’t even be here if she didn’t put me up for adoption,” Snooki said on the show. “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.”
While Snooki’s adoption was a closed adoption, she finally got the answers she had been looking for as a young adult.
“[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 explained. “She’s really happy she talked to you, and she loves you.”
While Snooki has not yet met her birth family face-to-face yet, she says she is open to the possibility.
Learning the details of why she was placed for adoption, and knowing that her birth mother loved her deeply, was an incredibly emotional moment for Snooki. She cried as she heard her birth mother say “Te amo (I love you),” later noting her own surprise at how impactful the moment felt.
With closed adoptions, adopted children sometimes feel disconnected from their past and have lingering questions about their birth family. Learning the details and meeting birth parents can help give an adoptee a deeper sense of self.
Snooki later explained that, while she was always happy to be a part of her adoptive family and never felt a strong longing to meet her birth family, she ended up pursuing the search for answers about her medical history – for herself and for the sake of her children. This is another benefit of open adoption. With an open adoption, adoptive families have a direct line of contact to learn about medical background and risks.
Learn More About Adoption
Whether you want to adopt or are considering making an adoption plan for your child, you can get the support you need. Adoptions With Love will walk you through the adoption process with respect, patience, and compassion. Call 800-722-7731, text (confidentially) 617-777-0072, or contact us online anytime.