Mikayla Matthews, a member of Hulu's reality docuseries The Secret Lives of Mormon Lives, has been battling an ongoing, undiagnosed chronic illness with no clear answers in sight.
She's one of the eight members of the show, and all of the scenes filmed about her illness, which was at its "absolute worst" at the time, were absent from the show's narrative.
Mikayla, 24, told Us Weekly in an exclusive interview on September 9 that she hasn't "found any answers yet."
“Still doing more testing. I just got a biopsy done yesterday. I’m going to go to a cancer institute and get tested for different blood cancers.”
Mikayla Matthews reveals she didn't know the show cut out her illness until it aired
The influencer opened up about the illness, which leaves noticeable red splotches on her skin, and how she's not gotten a diagnosis in nearly three years. Mikayla Matthews, a mother of three, said:
"After I had my third child, I started getting really bad allergies. Then I started getting molluscum on my neck, and then little rashes all over. After that, I got my breast implants in, and the rashes got even worse."
She also revealed that she had to ingest steroids three times, thereby gaining "12 pounds of inflation." Some of the symptoms she had while dealing with the subsequent steroid withdrawal were "head-to-toe rashes, opened wounds, hives, and shakes." The metal toxicity oozing from the mercury fillings in her mouth was an added struggle.
The influencer revealed that she'd done it all: a “hair analysis test, urine test, stool test," but has yet to understand what's burdening her. During the interview, she showed her forearm, noting that she was "still red" and "still going through it.”
"I’m a lot better than I was, but I still have my ups and downs, so it’s just frustrating to not get any answers and feel like I’m on my own and then have to navigate being in this really exciting time while not feeling my best. And so that’s kind of been the trickiest.”
Mikayla Matthews reveals what it was like filming while ill
Mom-of-three Mikayla Matthews, married to Jace Terry, shared that the condition started impacting her mentally while she was filming for the Secret Lives of Mormon Wives. She narrated:
“There was the time where the back of my legs and every crease was cut and bleeding, and I could barely even stand up and walk and take care of my kids. And so that was a really hard time. I feel like my confidence was at an all time low. I feel like just my quality of life wasn’t great because I could barely do anything. I was filming during that time, and so I would go, I would be crying on the way to filming, being like, ‘Oh my gosh, I look so horrible.’ And then I would get there and just not be fully present.”
She echoed these sentiments while speaking to Newsweek, saying that showing up was "hard for her," but she didn't want to be a spoilsport, so she did it anyway. She noted that filming was tough on her mental and physical health, but she wanted to "show up and support" her friends and share her side of the story. She revealed that at the time, she was grappling with pain, full-body nerve damage, and her skin "just hurting all the time."
Mikayla Matthews further revealed that she first started her path to healing when they started filming, during which she took out her breast implants. However, she disclosed that it did not make the final cut while it was filmed. She said she had to wait for the show to drop on September 6 to learn that. She told Newsweek that she found it "frustrating."
"I did know that my story wasn't going to be in it because I was asked questions about the drama. What was disappointing for me is that I'm not really in the series at all."
In her interview with Us Weekly, Mikayla Matthews added that by the time filming for season 2 rolls around, she hopes she's in a "better state." She joked that she just might be the "villain [in] season two and more confrontational for calling everybody wrong."
The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives revolves around a group of women based in Salt Lake City. The official synopsis reads:
"The scandalous world of a group of Mormon mom influencers implodes when they get caught in the midst of a swinging sex scandal that makes international headlines. Now, their sisterhood is shook to its core. Faith, friendship and reputations are all on the line."
Cast members include Mikayla Matthews, Taylor Frankie Paul, Demi Engemann, Jennifer Affleck, Jessi Ngatikaura, Layla Wessel, Mayci Neeley, and Whitney Leavitt. The show is currently available to stream on Hulu.
