Nicole Curtis Doesn't Have The Fondest Memories Of Her Time On HGTV

Nicole Curtis is looking back at her long career as an HGTV star with some regrets, as she reflects on what she sacrificed to achieve fame. The "Rehab Addict" star rose to prominence in 2010 when her hit series debuted on the network, following her as she renovated and restored old houses throughout the country. However, Curtis recently explained just how much that fame and success actually cost her.

Speaking with Fox News Digital, she explained that she now feels she missed out on being an attentive and involved mother as she worked harder on her career than her family. Curtis is the mother to 9-year-old son, Harper, and was entangled in a contentious custody battle with ex Shane Maguire. She also shares a son, Ethan, with ex Steven Cimini. According to Curtis, she pursued her HGTV career to try to make her kids' lives better.

"When we were first shooting the show, my son [Ethan] was in sixth grade. And I wasn't chasing fame... I just wanted to live comfortably," she told the outlet. "I wanted to give my son a life that he could enjoy things in life without seeing me struggle... I was chasing that money hard because I wanted a better life for us." However, Curtis said that in doing so, she put "Rehab Addict" and her career before so many other things, including her family. "If I could get those years back, I would trade everything in a heartbeat," she added.

Nicole Curtis' hit HGTV series "Rehab Addict" came to an end after eight seasons in 2018, amid an acrimonious legal battle over custody of her youngest son, Harper. She later told People that she was "completely burned out" from both shooting her series and fighting in court, and Curtis decided to step out of the limelight as a result. "There was so much time in those 10 years where I didn't get to enjoy it at all. I was stressed out," she recalled. However, in January 2021, Curtis returned to HGTV with a new series, "Rehab Addict Rescue," a spin-off of her original show, which only ran for one season, despite stellar ratings.

In November 2022, Curtis revealed on Facebook that the show would not be continuing and that she had made the decision to "kill" the spinoff. The TV host explained, "I realize that it's not the norm that someone shoots down their own number one rated show, but it's me and I do what feels right, not what makes me the most [money]." So, she stepped back from the show to focus on the things most important to her.

Now, Curtis is planning her next chapter: starting her own production company. "I ran my show, I directed my show. I bought the properties. I designed the properties. I hired the crews and I worked with them," Curtis told Fox News Digital. "So now I'm going to do all the heavy lifting and we're going to run it the way that I need it to run so that it works properly for my life and my family." She's now shopping a new show around that she self-funded, and is working hard to get her next home renovation series off the ground.