Grey’s Anatomy Alum Chyler Leigh and Nathan West Call It Quits After 23 Years
After 23 years of marriage, Grey’s Anatomy star Chyler Leigh has revealed she and husband Nathan West quietly split, opening up about the breakup on the May 12 episode of the Books That Changed My Life podcast.
Chyler Leigh has quietly ended her 23-year marriage to Nathan West, and she explained why in the most straightforward way possible: it was time.
How she shared the news
Leigh, 44, opened up on the Tuesday, May 12 episode of the podcast 'Books That Changed My Life.' While talking about a moment when she finally reached out for help, she said the relationship had simply run its course after decades together. By her count, they would have hit 26 years as a couple this year.
'What you want and what I want aren’t really lining up anymore. I’d rather us be on good terms and not harbor resentment or anger. It’s not worth it.'
She emphasized that things are amicable between her and West, 47. The decision, she said, became impossible to ignore at home: their differences were obvious to their three kids, which shifted the mood in the house. Both Leigh and West have their own family trauma histories, and she felt like they were stuck repeating patterns neither of them wanted. So they chose to end it before it hardened into something worse.
Their story, quick version
- 1999: They meet. Leigh is 16, West is 20.
- July 2002: They marry in Alaska.
- December 2003: Their first child, Noah, is born when Leigh is 21. They go on to have three kids: Noah (now 22), Taelyn (19), and Anniston (17).
- Work overlap: Leigh (best known as Lexie Grey on 'Grey's Anatomy') guest-starred in three episodes of '7th Heaven' in 2000, where West had a recurring role as Johnny. They also made music together as WestLeigh, contributing to West's band, East of Eli.
- Now: After 23 years of marriage, they have separated on good terms, which Leigh revealed on the May 12 podcast.
A little context from earlier years
Back in 2009, Leigh told People that the jump from zero to one kid hit hard, going from one to two was trickier, and two to three was another bump, but by the third she felt more confident and organized — the calm mom, calm baby thing. Around the same time, West said that once their youngest, Anniston, arrived, he could not picture the family any other way; she felt like the missing piece.
There is no messy blowup here, at least not publicly. Leigh sounds like someone choosing peace for everyone involved, especially the kids. Not dramatic, not flashy — just a long relationship that reached its natural endpoint.