Liam Payne’s ex Maya Henry reveals that his drug use ‘tore us apart’

Henry and the One Direction alum got engaged in 2020 before officially calling it quits in 2022. Liam Payne’s ex-fiancée, Maya Henry, has broken her silence about his death and revealed that they broke up due to his drug use and addiction issues. “On drugs, he became someone unrecognizable — so different from his sober self,” she continued. “I kept hoping each incident would be a wake-up call for him to get help, but it never was.”.

She said she “tried to be there for” Payne as much as she could when they were dating since she convinced herself that she “could fix things” and “he would change.” However, she ended up putting herself in situations “that were unsafe and harmful” and ignored “every red flag” because she wanted to help him. “I let myself believe that love could be stronger than addiction, that if I endured enough, if I sacrificed enough, he would see how much I cared and finally choose a different path,” Henry added. “But that’s not how addiction works. No matter how much I tried to save him, I was drowning in the process.”.

She continued to claim that the former One Direction alum was struggling with things, like “parts of his identity” that he wasn’t ready to face when they were together. “I saw the signs; I felt the distance. In the end, it wasn’t just the betrayals or the addictions that broke us — it was the realization that I had spent years in something that was never what I thought it was. I don’t fault him for his struggles,” she added. “I stood by him in his darkest moments, through the chaos, through the pain, through things that broke me in ways I can’t explain.”.

She confessed that once the relationship ended, she felt “nothing but emptiness,” with the realization that the love she had and sacrifices she made for Payne “weren’t enough.” While she was “heartbroken” when they split, she knew she wasn’t to blame for it. “But what I do know is this: It wasn’t about me or anything I did. It was about struggles beyond my control. And in the end, I had to choose myself. I had to walk away, no matter how much it hurt, because staying in his world meant losing myself,” she added.

The influencer concluded her statement by sharing what “hurt the most” for her, as she looks back on the relationship after Payne’s death. “I’m left with the aftermath of his actions that continue to unfold. As I’ve uncovered the extent of his non-consensual image sharing — images he acquired during our engagement and shared without my knowledge or consent — I’m faced with the complexity of grieving for someone I cared so deeply about despite the pain they have caused me,” she said.

Payne and Henry first confirmed their relationship in September 2019, nearly a year after they were first spotted together. Although they got engaged in 2020, they split up in June 2021. However, they rekindled their romance months later before finally breaking up in May 2022. If you or someone you know is suffering from drug addiction, you can seek confidential help in the US by contacting the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration at 1-800-662-HELP.