Jinger Duggar Opens Up on ‘Burden’ of Growing Up in a Large Family With 18 Siblings

Jinger Vuolo (née Duggar) opened up about growing up in a large family, admitting that there were “burdens” that came with having so many siblings.

“I also grew up in a large family. I took care of a couple of my siblings and helped them do their music and school and missed out on a couple little opportunities because of it,” Jinger, 30, said while appearing on the Wednesday, May 1, episode of the “Grace & Truth with Owen Strachan” podcast. “And it’s part of growing up in a large family.”

After noting that she doesn’t have any “anger or bitterness” about her upbringing, Jinger said that her life could have “looked differently” if she wasn’t raised in that “setting.”

Jinger looked back at growing up with a large family while discussing the role of motherhood as a Christian. After acknowledging that some people that follow her faith believe it is a woman’s role to be a mother and act as “birthing machines,” Jinger noted that her parents, Jim Bob Duggar and Michelle Duggar, did a good job of raising their 19 children.

“They did a great job, like, investing in each one of us,” she said about her parents, adding that couples that choose to have several kids will ultimately have to deal with certain situations due to the sizes of their families. “That definitely happens in any large family.”

One example that Jinger used was that mothers are often looked at to take care of their children. However, those responsibilities regularly fall on the older children when the mother is unable to help.

While Jinger didn’t address her own education, she said that older siblings may not have time to devote to their studies because they’re busy taking care of the younger kids.

Jim, 58, and Michelle, 57, raised their kids to follow the Institute of Basic Life Principles (IBLP), while they were also homeschooled through the Advanced Training Institute International curriculum that was rooted within the organization’s teachings.

The curriculum was “a Christian home education program that exhorted families to center their lives and learning around the Word of God,” according to the program’s website.

The program was very controversial because the scripture acted as the primary source of learning for all subjects, including linguistics, law, history, science and medicine.

In April, Jinger revealed if she would ever pursue a higher education in the future since she stopped following IBLP’s teachings. “[I] haven’t given that too much thought,” she said during an Instagram Q&A with fans on April 3. “I am all about learning new things. We’ll see!”