Melissa Villaseñor says ‘Saturday Night Live’ departure was ‘about my mental health’

Melissa Villaseñor’s unexpected exit from “Saturday Night Live” was her choice, she says.

The comedienne was among the eight cast members to leave ahead of the iconic sketch comedy series’ current 48th season, which kicked off Oct. 1.

Citing mental health struggles as a major factor, Villaseñor opened up about making the decision to depart.

“It was my decision. I gave myself a lot of time in the summer to think on it and play it out in my head,” the 35-year-old funnywoman revealed on this week’s episode of The Daily Beast’s “Last Laugh” podcast. “At the end of the day, it was about my mental health. Last season, I had a couple panic attacks. I was struggling, and I always felt like I was on the edge of a cliff every week. I was like, ‘I don’t want to do that to myself anymore.’”

Emmy Award winners Kate McKinnon and Chris Redd, alongside Pete Davidson, Aidy Bryant, Kyle Mooney, Alex Moffat and featured player Aristotle Athari also left the Lorne Michaels-created NBC mainstay after last season.

Villaseñor, who joined “SNL” in 2016, clarified that she doesn’t blame the production or staffers for her decision.

“It’s not like the show was mean toward me or anyone,” Villaseñor said, describing herself as an introvert who becomes small in a “big group of a lot of amazing people” — which is commonplace on the star-studded series. “There was just something telling me, I think I could part ways.”