Nikki Bella is finally opening up about her messy split from Artem Chigvintsev ... calling it "really tough" just 2 weeks after they settled their divorce.
The "Total Bellas" star got real about her heartbreak as she made her return to "The Nikki & Brie Show" podcast after Artem's August arrest -- reflecting on how she dreamed of the perfect family ... but instead, it all went from "having a great love story to having a terrible one."
Nikki also got candid about her time away from the spotlight, revealing as a mom, her 4-year-old son Matteo's privacy comes before everything else, so she needed to protect him by stepping away from the public eye.