Renowned Nollywood actor Jim Iyke has offered an insightful perspective on the factors that led to the dissolution of his marriage to American-Lithuanian lawyer Dana Kinduryte. The couple had tied the knot in 2015 and welcomed their son, Harvis, but ultimately parted ways after a few years of marriage.
Jim Iyke shared a deeply personal and introspective account of the emotional challenges that played a pivotal role in the breakdown of his marriage during an open interview with media personality Toke Makinwa.
One of the central themes that Iyke discussed was his inability to emotionally connect with his wife, particularly in the wake of the tragic loss of his mother in 2014. He acknowledged that this deeply traumatic event had a profound impact on his emotional state and hindered his ability to reciprocate the affection offered by his spouse.
In his own words, the actor admitted, “I was dealing with two parallels that I could not contain. I just lost my mom, and I was in a place where I didn’t know how to navigate the emotions the woman was giving me. I just needed somebody. She didn’t need me that way. She needed to love me, and I would love her back, and I couldn’t reciprocate. I turned all my attention on our child, and she didn’t know how to deal with it.”
Jim Iyke further revealed that he felt compelled to assume the role of a strong male role model within his family due to being the only boy. This unique family dynamic created additional emotional complexities for him, as he grappled with the weight of familial expectations and the demands of his own grieving process.
“I was the second head of the family; my father had fallen apart emotionally, and I had only sisters. I did not allow myself the luxury of grief but it cost me because at the end of the day when everybody survived, I started struggling,” Iyke disclosed.
Further into his revelation, Jim Iyke’s wife had attempted to encourage him to seek therapy to address these emotional challenges, but he was initially resistant to the idea. He conveyed that he had never sought the help of a therapist before and that this reluctance ultimately impacted the dynamic of their relationship.
“My wife was trying to get me to see a therapist. I was like, ‘are you crazy? I have never been with one.’ She was trying to get a reciprocal for the love she was giving in the union but it did not work,” he shared.