Mikayla Matthews, 25-year-old star of Hulu’s The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, has separated from her husband Jace Terry after eight years of marriage. The couple faces ongoing intimacy challenges, as revealed in the show’s fourth season that premiered today.

Marriage and Family Background

Matthews and Terry married in March 2018 and share four children: Beckham, 8; Haven, 6; Tommie, 4; and Lottie, nearly 1. Their youngest daughter was born in July last year.

Reasons for Separation

In a confessional from season 4, Matthews discloses that both she and Terry decided to separate after attempting therapy to address intimacy struggles. She previously shared experiencing sexual abuse as a child for four or five years, ending in her teenage years.

Matthews notes therapy proved difficult amid her chronic eczema flare-ups. “It’s hard to focus” while managing her health battles, she states.

Therapy Insights and Future Plans

Matthews plans to focus on personal growth during their separation, while Terry urges commitment to trauma therapy. “I think it’s hard anytime you bring up the stuff with the sex and the intimacy,” she tells him. “My nervous system is already in fight or flight, and I’m already maxed out. My bucket is full.”

Terry responds, “For me, it seems like the solution to that would be to commit to trauma therapy until you’re at a point where it doesn’t make your nervous system freak out.”

Matthews clarifies no intention exists for permanent separation. “We’re obviously still going to see each other every single day. I’m not trying to go even a day away from the kids,” she adds.

She describes the issues as still new for both. “Last season, we dove into the beginning stages of it, and that was me revisiting all this trauma for the first time,” Matthews explains. “It’s still new to me, and it’s new to him, and we’re just navigating it the best way that we can.”

Health and Relationship Struggles

Matthews links her chronic eczema and postpartum recovery to setbacks in her marriage. Speaking to castmate Whitney Leavitt, she prioritizes health over therapy: “It’s hard to focus on anything else and be motivated to fix anything else while I’m in this state.”

Terry confides in Dakota Mortensen about limited progress: “I’m definitely not okay with it, but me throwing fits about it all the time doesn’t help. So I just feel like the only thing I can do is be patient and be there for her.”

Recalling a frustrating therapy session with castmate Mayci Neeley, Matthews says, “I’m like, ‘Okay, fine, go have sex with someone else. Like, leave me alone almost.’ I feel like I’m working on so many different things outside of just sex.” She adds, “We both get to a point where we feel really helpless about it.”

Recent Developments

Despite the split, Terry appears in Matthews’ Instagram post from yesterday, sharing behind-the-scenes footage from season 4 filming. Last March, Matthews celebrated their seventh anniversary online: “7 years married to my best friend he sticks by me and cheers me on in every aspect of my life. Has truly carried me through chronic illness and all the struggles.”

Season 4 of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, featuring 10 episodes, streams now on Hulu.