American Olympic swimming icon Ryan Lochte painted a grim picture of his life with his now ex-wife, which he claims exacerbated his habit of using drugs and alcohol.

Lochte, who is now out of rehab and is dating kindergarten teacher Molly Gillihan, opened up about the darker periods of his life leading up to his now much-happier life.

Previously, Lochte was married to former Playboy playmate Kayla Rae Reid - with whom he shared three children.

In an interview with the New York Post, the 41-year-old Lochte opened up on what led to him splitting from Reid, admitting that they 'lost the love for each other a long, long time ago.'

Lochte added that the couple 'stayed together for the kids' while he was 'getting just beaten down emotionally' - leading him to turning towards drugs and alcohol. 

'After the 2021 Olympic trials, I was in a very big depression,' the six-time gold medal winner told the outlet.

'My mental health was gone and the household that I was living in, it was toxic and it wasn't good for me.

'I was lost and it didn't help that my other partner at the time would say, "You're worthless, you're a loser. You need to get up and get a job"' And I was like, "I really can't. I don't know what to do. I'm lost."'

Lochte revealed that his problem with drugs and alcohol got worse following a near-fatal car wreck in 2023.

'I just did it to escape the hell that I was living in,' he said. 'It was mostly weed and cocaine. Yeah, it's horrible. I look at myself now and I'm just like, what the hell was I ever thinking?'

Lochte maintains that he 'never did drugs in front of the kids' despite accusations from Reid. He also claims he never considered himself to have been addicted.

The American swimming star also opened up about the scandal he was involved in during the 2016 Olympics in Rio - which he admits was the biggest turning point that led to his drug habit.

At the time, Lochte and three teammates claimed they were robbed at gunpoint in the Brazilian city. It was later revealed that they had all lied and actually vandalized a gas station bathroom.

Not only did the quartet pay for the damages, Lochte also received plenty of backlash and lost major sponsorships.

'It was the biggest wake-up call,' he told the Post. 'It was the biggest fall that I’ve ever had and I fell into a black hole and I couldn’t get out.

'And I tried to climb out and then once I got out, I got knocked back down…it happened multiple times after 2016.

'No-one ever taught me what happens when you become famous or when you get all this money,' he added.

'No one ever told me about financial literacy. No one ever told me about ever when you’re on top of the mountain and you fall down, how to get back up. No one never taught me that.

'But now I did it. I guess I was the guinea pig for myself and now I can honestly change people’s lives. I can help them, make them reach their dreams, their goals that I once had when I was a little kid and I could help them get there.'