NEWSJinger and Joy-Anna Duggar Admit It's Been 'Hard' to Deal With Family's 'Sickening' Scandals: 'Sin Is So Dark and Heavy'
Jinger and Joy-Anna reflected on the hardships they've faced as a result of family scandals.
Sept. 8 2026, Published 11:49 a.m. ET
Jinger Duggar and Joy-Anna Duggar opened up about the emotional toll of the scandals that have continued to affect their family, acknowledging how difficult it was to process painful revelations involving people they love.
"It has been really hard. It's been really hard to process and go through," Joy-Anna said during a September 2 episode of "The Jinger & Jeremy Podcast."
She added, "There's been so many sickening, horrible things that have happened."
Joy-Anna Said Family Turmoil Overwhelms Her
Joy-Anna described the things that had happened as horrible and sickening.
Joy-Anna said the family's latest troubles have affected her well beyond the initial shock.
"It does send me into a spiral," she said. "I think I'm finally coming out of the spiral."
She described how difficult it can be to process painful developments involving relatives while continuing with everyday life.
She Linked the Pain to the Weight of Sin
Joy-Anna said 'sin is so dark and heavy.'
Joy-Anna connected the family's difficult experiences to her Christian beliefs, saying the consequences of wrongdoing can be especially difficult for loved ones to carry.
"Sin is so dark and heavy," she observed. "It's hard to find true joy."
"Happiness is circumstantial," continued the 28-year old. "True joy is something that you can have even in the midst of the storm."
- Joseph Duggar's Sister Joy-Anna Slams Brother's 'Deeply Disturbing' Child Molestation Charges: 'My Heart Is With the Victim'
- Jinger Duggar and Husband Jeremy Vuolo Break Silence on 'Devastating' Arrest of Her Brother Joseph: 'I Don't Even Have Words'
- Duggar Family Isn't 'As Close As They Once Were' Following Josh's Child Pornography Scandal, Spills Source
Want OK! each day? Sign up here!
The Sisters Have Faced Other Dark Chapters
Besides the family scandals, Jinger and Joy-Anna have experienced difficult moments tied to their babies.
The painful family developments are not the only experiences that have tested the sisters.
Joy-Anna recalled losing her daughter Annabelle at 20 weeks of pregnancy in 2019.
"That was extremely hard," she said. "I felt like, at first, I was like, 'I'm going to be strong, and I'm going to push through this.' But after the dust settled and, like, a new normal had to start happening, it was really hard."
Jinger also recalled the postpartum depression she experienced after the birth of her daughter Evangeline in 2020.
"I remember after having Evie, I had postpartum depression," Jinger said. "I was so down. I could not figure out up from down, couldn't clean my house, couldn't get up much."
The Duggars Have Faced Years of Controversy
The Duggar brothers have faced charges related to child abuse and molestation.
The sisters' comments come against a long history of turmoil involving members of the Duggar family.
Their eldest brother, Josh Duggar, is serving a more than 12-year federal prison sentence after being convicted in 2021 of receiving and possessing child sexual abuse material.
Their brother Joseph Duggar was arrested in March on child molestation charges. He pleaded not guilty, and the case remains pending.
The family also faced intense scrutiny after the disclosure of Josh's past conduct led to the cancelation of 19 Kids and Counting in 2015. TLC later launched Counting On, which followed other members of the family before ending in 2021.
