Stephanie McMahon Reveals She's Taking Leave of Absence from WWE to 'Focus on My Family'

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WWE Chief Brand Officer Stephanie McMahon is stepping back from her duties — for now.

On Thursday, the 45-year-old announced on Twitter that she will be taking a leave of absence in order to turn her attention to her loved ones.

Her father and WWE CEO Vince McMahon will be the only McMahon who remains with the organization until her return. Stephanie's brother Shane McMahon stepped down as a company executive in 2010 and was reportedly released from the WWE earlier this year, per CBS Sports.

"As of tomorrow, I am taking a leave of absence from the majority of my responsibilities at WWE," she wrote. "WWE is a lifelong legacy for me and I look forward to returning to the company that I love after taking this time to focus on my family."

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Following the announcement, Stephanie received overwhelming support for her decision.

Professional wrestler Johnny Gargano commented under the post, writing, "You're the best, Steph! Enjoy the time with your family❤️."

WWE star Alexa Bliss added, "We love you @StephMcMahon 🖤."

Stephanie has been with the WWE since 2000 and was in the ring for 18 years. She has been the chief brand officer since December 2013, after previously serving as executive vice president of creative writing since 2007. She married WWE star Paul "Triple H" Levesque in 2003 and the couple share three children together, daughters Aurora Rose, 15, Murphy Claire, 13, and Vaughn Evelyn, 11.

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The news of Stephanie's time off comes just months after Levesque announced that his wrestling career has officially come to an end due to heart issues. The 52-year-old revealed back in March that he's "done" with the sport after having cardiac surgery in September 2021.

"As far as in the ring ... I'm done. I will never wrestle again," he said during an appearance on ESPN's Stephen A.'s World. "First of all I have a defibrillator in my chest. Probably not a good idea for me to get zapped on live TV."

"I had viral pneumonia. My lungs were inflamed. As the next couple of days went on, when I got home it got increasingly worse," he continued. "My wife saw some blood and stuff that I was coughing up. I went and got checked; it was coming from the viral pneumonia but I had fluid in my lungs. I had some fluid in my heart."

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After getting multiple heart tests, Levesque was told his heart was not pumping properly.

"The way your heart pumps out, 55 to 65 percent of your ejection fraction is a good number. I was at 30," he explained. "I got a quick text message saying 'Don't take time, pack a bag real quick, head to the emergency room. I'll fill you in on the way.' "

By the time he got to the hospital, his ejection fraction had dropped to 22 percent.

"I was in heart failure, bad," the athlete recalled. "I was nosediving. Sort of at the one-yard line of where you need to be, or where you don't want to be really, for your family and your future. When they tell you it's 99 percent it gets real."

Levesque first entered a WWE ring as "Hunter Hearst Helmsley," a snobby, upper-class aristocrat who considered himself royalty, in April 1995. His character eventually became the leather jacket-wearing, sledgehammer-carrying, motorcycle-riding villain Triple H.

After wrestling in his final match in 2019, Levesque is now the WWE's executive vice president of global talent strategy and development.