She’s beautiful, smart and passionate about her family, her amazing career and life itself. A familiar face from the front lines of the entertainment world (you may recognize her from popular hosting gigs on Extra and E! News or regular appearances on Today and Access Hollywood), Maria Menounos has understood the struggles of pursuing on-camera success since her early days as a reporter – but it was unforeseen medical issues that created even more challenging speed bumps on her road to happiness.
After undergoing surgery on her 39th birthday to remove a benign-yet-dangerous brain tumor, Maria – now a new mother – faced even more unfortunate news in 2023 – a terrifying diagnosis of Stage 2 Pancreatic Cancer. Thankfully, this discovery was made early enough that surgery and survival was possible, and she approached the situation with the same positivity, bravery, and strength that fans have come to know and love her for. The surgery was 100% successful, leaving Maria cancer-free and grateful for the continued gift of life – a message that inspires her popular daily podcast, Heal Squad X Maria Menounos.
With an effortless beauty fueled by gratitude and grace, Maria chatted with NEW YOU about balancing her family and career, the importance of prioritizing our health, and sharing her inspiring love of life with us each day on Heal Squad X Maria Menounos.
NY: Your positivity, energy, and enthusiasm for your work always leaps off the screen. What’s your secret to looking and feeling energetic, youthful, and vibrant for the cameras and beyond?
MM: My secret to being vibrant is that I love life and I love people and I love trying things. I am not afraid to try new things and explore and fail. I don’t like failing, but I’ll still try everything. I just feel like life is so precious, so we must really enjoy every second because you just don’t know what’s around the corner. I’ve gone through those moments where I’ve been on the cliff being like, “are we going to be okay?” God has blessed me at every turn, and I’ve been okay.
I’ve always been someone that’s loved to live and loved people. I think it’s part of my Greek heritage, but I really know how important it is to enjoy every second. This all means nothing. We are all little teeny particles in the grand scheme of things. Whatever we do here should be to enjoy ourselves, be good to people around us, and do good in the world. And nothing else really matters – not what you have or what you don’t have. None of that matters.
NY: Your story has included so many personal and professional challenges along the way. Can you point to a specific philosophy you’ve leaned on that motivates you to work through them as you continue to create more success stories for yourself?
MM: Having gone through a lot of things, I’ve had a lot of tools that have helped me through the years. Some I’ve learned on my show, some I’ve learned from other people through the brain tumor stuff. Rocky’s quote from Rocky Balboa was my favorite, and Sly Stallone’s a good friend and I love him. So that one is, “it ain’t about how hard you hit, it’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward”. I’ve always used that to help get me back up. There’s also “focus equals feeling” that I learned from Tony Robbins. What you focus on is what you’re going to feel. I would rather feel great, so I’m going to focus on things that are going to make me feel great. Even if I’m sad or I’m down or scared, I’ll think of butterflies. I’ll think of being out in nature. I’ll think of my mom or someone I love, whatever I can do to prime myself into a good place. Whatever you focus on, you will feel.
The other one that I love is choosing wonder over worry, especially after this recent cancer experience. I was really, really scared this time, I had a baby coming and I wanted to be here for her. I remember shifting at some point and saying, “okay, I’ve got to choose wonder over worry. I wonder what it’s going to be like when the doctor calls with good news. I wonder what it’s going to be like when I get to the other side of surgery and I’m okay. I wonder what it’s going to be like to hear that I’m cancer free.”
NY: We often hear about the importance of work-life balance, but it can be a real struggle for many women. How do you manage to find harmony between your new mom duties and your professional and personal life?
MM: We have so many things to do as women, and trying to think about doing it all is crazy. I really am just focusing on [my daughter] and whatever I can do to enjoy my time with her and have those special moments, I find changing her diaper a really special moment along with feeding her and hugging and kissing her.
I plan a few things for myself too. Like I’m here doing this today, but when I go home, I’m going to be with her the rest of the day and she’s got me. I am not trying to do it all. I’m just trying to do whatever I can each day and then whatever doesn’t get done, we’ll move on to the next day.
NY: NEW YOU is The Voice of Health and Beauty. Do you have a daily routine to look and feel your best?
MM: For me, my circadian rhythm is important. I’m up before sunrise, I watch the sunrise and throughout the day I make sure that my eyeballs that have UV receptors get that light. The light is the most medicinal thing. We’ve been told to stay away from it, and we are unhealthier than ever.
I also make sure I eat before sunset, which is great for your circadian rhythm. When I see the sunset or I see the darkness my body knows what time it is from the light outside every single day so that it’ll continue to produce melatonin. Then I go to bed by nine. By 9:30, I’m out cold, and this keeps harmony in the body.
I eat really, really clean. I was diagnosed with Type-1 diabetes last summer, and I have my dad as a really great role model. He’s had it for over 50 years. He’s 79 and he’s outside helping me build a guest house right now in 106 degree weather. He’s a beast.
I focus on protein and vegetables – clean, clean eating. I had a few fries today- don’t tell anybody, but for the most part, very clean eating and not too much water, but making sure I stay hydrated.
Blue light toxicity is a really big deal, so I’m trying to minimize my exposure to blue light. My baby has barely been in any kind of modern light. Even when she was born, we had no lights on, so I’m really being mindful of that for her too.
NY: Tell us about Heal Squad X Maria Menounos. Why is this the right time for you to bring to the world these deep conversations with experts, healers, and enlightened thought leaders every day?
MM: Heal Squad is a daily podcast. I always say it’s like a “Good Morning America”, but my version, and I think it’s important for people to understand what health really is and the status of what health is in our world. We don’t ever get to look behind the curtain of a modern medical institution and really know what they’re capable of and what they’re not capable of.
I want to help everybody understand their health and how to do it easier because it’s so overwhelming. That’s what we do every single day. You listen to the show, we’re your accountability partner, you’re on this journey with us. That’s why we’re a Heal Squad, and you will learn things that will change or save your life because that’s what’s happened to me and many people who listen.
NY: How have your priorities changed over the years, both professionally and personally?
MM: Professionally, my priorities have changed significantly. Ever since I was diagnosed with a brain tumor, I now put my health first above all things. Before I was really putting my career first in terms of never missing a day of work, no matter how sick I was, no matter what was going on, I didn’t take my body or my health into a high enough regard. Family was always first, of course – my parents and my husband. But outside of that, it was like be a good employee and hustle and work and fight and overcome. Now I’m like, “body, what do you need?” I really listen to my body and I take care of it as best I can. I know that my health is the most important thing for everybody around me and for myself.
NY: For those of us looking to take a proactive stance towards our well-being, where should we draw the line between being healthy while still enjoying life?
MM: I don’t think that trying to have a healthy life should stress you out in any way, but it does. You’re hearing how this is bad and that is bad, and so people give up and I don’t want people to feel like it’s overwhelming. I think that if you are just doing better every single day, if you make little choices and accumulate better habits throughout the day and throughout the week and throughout the months, that’s a simple way to look at it.
You don’t have to completely take everything out of your life and start this completely vegan diet, it’s too overwhelming if you look at it like that. For me, everything is baby steps, so just keep accumulating better decisions. There’s no need to draw the line between choosing health or your career or your life. You can do all of these things, but in a measured way. You should never sacrifice your health for anything. A lot of us do, and we’ve been taught to do that.
NY: As you emerged from your cancer journey, you mentioned feeling like a new person. How did this experience change your perspective on life and what aspects of yourself did you discover or rediscover during this time?
MM: Well, I think through this last journey, I really know how strong I am. It is abundantly clear that I can handle a lot, and I think that I’m really good at healing, and that’s a huge compliment to my family around me who took such good care of me. I think what I’ve learned with each diagnosis is that life is super-precious, so I am taking more trips and spending more time with my family. I’m really leaning back and not worrying about all these external things that don’t make a difference in that moment. Because when you’re diagnosed with something and you think you’re going to die, nothing matters but your family and your friends, the people that you love and the good things that you did in this world. It’s hard to look at life through that perspective if you haven’t gone through it, but it really is true.
NY: We often hear about the importance of self-care, especially during times of adversity. What self-care practices did you adopt during your cancer journey and how did you continue to prioritize self-nurturing in your everyday life?
MM: I had a red light in the hospital with me. I had all my natural things that I added in the mix. I had a friend who’s an energy worker who came to visit me, but for the most part, it was just good old-fashioned healing and letting time do its thing. My dad cooked really healthy food for me at home and going outside in the grass and grounding was really big, getting the light on my body so that it would help heal me as well. I think it was just really staying as natural as I could.
NY: Many women struggle with self-doubt and imposter syndrome. How do you deal with those feelings and what strategies do you use to boost your self-confidence?
MM: If I’m feeling like I’m having some imposter syndrome moments, I usually go to my husband and he whacks it out of me (laughs). I know all of us have it. It’s hard not to have those moments, but what do I do? I listen to good music and start dancing, and then everything feels good. Remember, motion equals emotion, so if I’m feeling down or unworthy, I’ll high five myself in the mirror. That’s a little technique I learned on the show. You never high five someone and tell them that they’re stupid or that they’re lame. It’s a celebration, so I high five myself in the mirror and I’m like, “you got this!”
NY: Congratulations on being a new mom! You went through surrogacy, and it was a deeply personal and intimate process. How did you navigate this journey and what advice would you give to other couples considering surrogacy as a family building option?
MM: We had a beautiful experience with surrogacy. It was everything and more than we could have imagined. We had a beautiful family that gave us the greatest gift in the world. I think for people who are on this journey, I just say go in with an open heart and allow for a natural connection with these people that are doing this for you. A lot of people can be fearful and make it transactional, and it doesn’t have to be. I think that you pick the people that you feel good with and have confidence that they want to do a great job, and that’s how I felt with my surrogate. Of course, I had some help from friends who had gone through the journey who I could lean on and ask, “Hey, should I worry about this? Should I worry about that?” At the end of the day, we just had a conversation where I figured out what was important to me.
I didn’t check up on her. You must give up some control. Surrender has been a big word in my life, and the more I’ve surrendered, the better I’ve felt, the less anxiety I’ve felt, and the better things have turned out. Things just work out so much better when you give up that control, and we have a beautiful daughter because of them.
NY: Tell us a little bit about her.
MM: Athena is my everything. She’s the love of my life, and we had the most beautiful birth, the most beautiful experience all around, and she’s everything. She’s brought so much joy to us. She’s made our home a home. I’ve lived there for 17 years, and I feel like I’ve always fled, and now I’m just anchored. I feel good. Wherever she is, I’m going to feel good. It’s exciting and it’s come at the right time. I feel like this time in my life I can be with her more than I would have if I had her younger, so I’m grateful for that.
NY: And one final question. What would you say to any couples out there considering surrogacy to provide encouragement and reassurance about this journey?
MM: I think if you’re looking to go the surrogate route, it can be magical. I think we all have to go different ways, and this way was amazing for us. Don’t give up!
Photography Fadil Berisha
Hair Ted Gibson
Makeup Gregory Arlt
Styling Derek Warburton
