“We Forgot How to Be Us”: Peta Murgatroyd Says Her Marriage to Maks Nearly Collapsed Under the Weight of Parenthood

In an emotional and painfully honest confession, Dancing with the Stars pro Peta Murgatroyd is opening up about the quiet unraveling of her marriage to fellow dancer Maksim Chmerkovskiy—and how becoming parents nearly broke them.

“We became parents… but we forgot how to be partners,” Peta admitted. “There was no ‘us’ anymore. Just bottles, diapers, exhaustion, and silence.”

From Passion to Pressure

Known for their fiery chemistry both on and off the dance floor, Peta and Maks once seemed like the ultimate power couple. But behind the glamour, the reality of raising young children brought their relationship to a breaking point.

“He was working nonstop. I was up every night. We were like ships passing,” she said. “We loved our son more than anything—but we were losing each other.”

The long nights, the endless feedings, the identity shifts… it all added up to a slow emotional distance that neither of them wanted to admit out loud.

“I didn’t feel seen. I didn’t feel touched. And I hated that I missed him… while he was sleeping right next to me.”

“I Snapped Over the Smallest Things”

Peta says the emotional toll of motherhood caught her off guard—and so did the resentment.

“I was angry all the time,” she confessed. “Not just at the lack of sleep, or the mess, but at Maks—for not knowing how much I was hurting without me having to say it.”

She describes breaking down during a fight over laundry. Another time, she locked herself in the bathroom just to cry.

“I didn’t want a divorce,” she said, her voice cracking. “But I didn’t know how to go on like that either.”

Choosing Each Other Again

It took therapy. Long conversations. Brutal honesty. But eventually, Peta and Maks made a decision—to stop surviving and start rebuilding.

“We had to remember why we chose each other in the first place. We had to relearn how to talk, how to touch, how to see one another again.”

Now, they’ve carved out weekly date nights, turned off their phones more often, and started treating their marriage with the same attention they give their child.

“We’re not perfect,” Peta said. “But we’re trying. And that effort? That’s love.”

“We’re Still Here. Together.”

Peta says she’s sharing their story not because it’s wrapped up in a pretty bow, but because it’s real—and she knows other couples need to hear it.

“Marriage after kids isn’t always magical. Sometimes it’s messy. Sometimes it’s lonely. But if both people are willing to fight for it? You can come back from the edge.”

And for Peta and Maks, that comeback story is still unfolding—step by step, hand in hand.