The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives is going gangbusters right now.
It follows eight Mormon influencers in the aftermath of a 2022 TikTok sex scandal that made international headlines: when one member of the Mormon MomTok group, Taylor Frankie Paul, revealed she had been engaging in "soft swinging" within their group of married friends.
Shockingly, that's not all when it comes to the drama from this cast.
Mayci Neeley is one of the stars, and on the show, her life appears relatively picture-perfect. But behind the scenes, she has a tragic backstory that wasn't aired.
Watch the official trailer for The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives. Post continues below.
Who is Mayci Neeley?
Neeley was a young tennis star while studying at Brigham Young University. She has gone on to become CEO of Babymama, a natal nutrition company.
She's also a #MomTok influencer, like all the gals on The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, and is currently documenting her IVF journey with her husband, Jacob Neeley.
The couple share a blended family, with two kids — a three-year-old daughter and a nine-year-old son.
Jacob Neeley isn't the biological father of the nine-year-old son though. Before her marriage, Neeley was in a relationship with Arik Mack. Then tragedy struck.
Mayci Neeley's former partner's tragic accident.
In February 2015, Neeley was at university on a tennis scholarship when she found out she was pregnant. She and her boyfriend at the time, Arik Mack, were both 19.
In an article for The Mirror, Neeley described Arik as "a bit of a wild guy" who was "so full of life". With this in mind, she said he was likely not ready to settle down into a life of nappies and nursery drop-offs.
She was devastated that she would have to give up her burgeoning career in tennis in order to go through with the pregnancy. But she was happy that Arik assured her he was ready to be a parent, and that he had plans to marry her.
Neeley quit tennis and moved back home so that her family could care for her during the pregnancy.
Arik stayed at the university, which was in a different city in Utah.
"Being away from Arik was harder than I thought. My hormones were all over the place. On 24 March 2015, Arik and I had a fight. The pressure on us had become too much and we started to argue over text," wrote Neeley.
"Little did I know that Arik was driving while texting me. Frustrated, I stopped replying to his messages."
Later that day, Neeley was scrolling through Instagram and noticed a series of tribute posts were being made for Arik. She saw a post that read: "I'll miss you, Arik" which had a photo of him.
The next post said, "RIP".
Neeley rang Mack's father, who confirmed the devastating news. She was told that Arik had been texting while driving and gotten into a devastating car crash. Arik was killed on impact.
Reflecting on that time of grief, Neeley said: "I was utterly destroyed. I had no idea that he was driving – I never would have replied to him if I knew. Arik was my best friend and suddenly, he was gone."
"My baby would never be held by their father. It was too much to bear."
Neeley fell into a deep depression, grieving the life she dreamed with Arik and that her son would grow up without his father.
In a TikTok video, Neeley said she received a range of hurtful comments from those around her, following the loss of Arik.
"You're young, you have plenty of time to find a father for your son."
"God has a plan for you."
"At least you'll never have to co-parent."
In September 2015, Neeley gave birth to their son, Hudson. She credits him for saving her life.
"He is the one who truly saved me. Life had meaning/purpose again. I'm here because of him," she shared in a TikTok.
Hudson still sees his biological grandparents on his father's side, Neeley saying "he loves them".
When Mayci Neeley met Jacob Neeley.
Mayci soon went back to university after having Hudson, and continued on with her tennis scholarship as a single mum.
Then, Jacob Neeley came into his her life when Hudson was seven months old.
Neeley says she and Jacob met through friends, and became friends themselves, though she was hesitant to make their relationship romantic given the recent loss she had endured.
"I was terrified of getting hurt again but, after four months, I couldn't deny my feelings any longer. He was kind and funny and made me feel safe," she wrote for The Mirror.
The pair began dating, and in November 2017, Jacob proposed.
In June 2018, the pair wed.
In August 2020, they announced they were expecting via IVF, and in February 2021, they welcomed daughter Harlow into the world.
"I love my wife. I love our baby. And I love God. Child birth is a miracle," wrote Jacob.
Jacob has also since officially adopted Hudson as his child. Currently, Jacob and Neeley are trying for a third child via IVF, as Neeley has been struggling with fertility. Now 29, Neeley said in a YouTube video that her hope is to be a mum to more kids.
"I'm excited," she noted.
"My story is not how I ever planned it to be but it changed me and made me into the person I am today… which I can say is a person that I am proud of. Grateful to be living this life."
Read more of Mamamia's content on The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives:
Feature Image: Instagram.
Do you buy groceries for your household? We’d love to hear your thoughts! Complete our short survey for a chance to win a $50 gift voucher.