Ethan Slater's wife almost died during childbirth just months before his Ariana Grande romance

Actor Ethan Slater's ex wife Lilly Jay has revealed she suffered a life threatening complication during childbirth before he moved on with his Wicked co-star Ariana Grande

Wicked actor Ethan Slater's ex wife has revealed her traumatic birth before their marriage crumbled as he started a new relationship with Ariana Grande.

Psychologist Lilly Jay married actor Ethan, 32, in 2018 and has a two-year-old son - whose name has not been released publicly. They filed for divorce in July 2023 and he quickly struck up a relationship with his 'Wicked' co-star Ariana, 31. Lilly has admitted the release of the Hollywood blockbuster has brought up more emotions for her as she opened up on the breakdown of her marriage.

In a candid essay, Lilly admitted the "darker" days in her life are when she "cannot escape" the mammoth promotion for Wicked. She confessed she never thought her marriage would end in divorce and "especially not just after giving birth to my first child". Lilly decided to share her birth story and revealed she suffered a life threatening complication.

She said: "During my pregnancy, I had never felt happier nor more aware of how precarious happiness could be." Lilly reflected on sobbing with relief when her baby was first place on her chest. Writing for The Cut, Lilly shared: "I survived preeclampsia, a life-threatening birth complication, and finally, our family was whole. Mine is a story of worrying in the wrong direction.

"As a perinatal psychologist, I knew all the statistics — how vulnerable a marriage is in the postpartum period, how vital community connection is in preventing depression and anxiety, how new parenthood impacts a whole family — but I confidently moved to another country with my 2-month-old baby and my husband to support his career."

The mum-of-one admitted she became "consumed by the magic and mundanity of new motherhood" and didn't understand the distance growing between herself and Ethan. She found motherhood filled her time but not her mind as she tried to accept "the sudden public downfall" of their marriage.

Lilly emotionally shared how she has had to "slowly but surely" come to terms with the fact that her life is not going to go as she had originally hoped. She had been in a relationship with Ethan since they were teenagers and thought they had a future together. Lilly heartbreakingly shared how she deeply misses a "life of invisibility" that she had created for herself as a psychologist as Ethan's new romance with Ariana shot her into the spotlight.

Ethan recently confessed has found it "difficult" with having his relationship with singer Ariana being in the public eye. Speaking to GQ magazine, the film star said: "I think there was something that was really difficult about things in your private life being commented on and looked at by the public. It’s really hard to see people who don’t know anything about what’s happening commenting on it and speculating, and then getting things wrong about the people you love."

Ariana, who was married to Dalton Gomez and started divorce proceedings the same month as Ethan, has spoke about her frustration surrounding the alleged overlap. She told The Zach Sang Show: "I feel like we don't need to go into any specifics. But of course, there's an insatiable frustration, inexplicable, hellish feeling with watching people misunderstand the people you love, and you and anything."

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