Jessa Duggar Seewald, the fifth child of former “19 Kids and Counting” stars Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, announced she’s expecting her seventh child in an October 18 appearance on the podcast “Unplanned.”
The six children Jessa and her husband Ben already have range from ages 10 to 1. The couple got married in a 2014 TLC special that garnered an impressive 4.3 million cable viewers.
Jessa Casually Drops Baby News in Unexpected Podcast Comment
Instead of making a big announcement in Instagram in typical celebrity fashion, Jessa chose to casually drop the news during a podcast interview. She told hosts Matt and Abby Howard, “We have six kids and we’re actually expecting again.”
“What?!” exclaimed Abby. Jessa replied, “Yeah, six weeks pregnant with number seven. Surprise!”
Ben confessed that sometimes his large family puts finances on his mind, and also occasionally makes him wonder if he’s “investing enough time in each kid.”
He says when Jessa told him about baby number six was on the way, he was hit by “anxious thoughts” because he wondered, “How are we gonna make it?”
Jessa jumped in to explain, “Number six was the only surprise baby. Everybody else, we knew were were ready.”
Jessa Duggar Tells the Story of Her ‘Unplanned’ 3rd Home Birth
Immediately after the birth of her third child, Ivy, Jessa was rushed to the hospital for a serious postpartum hemorrhage and required transfusions for major blood loss.
On the podcast, she address the incident and said, “I was planning for a hospital birth with my third.” She says she was planning to bring a midwife to the hospital when the time came, but her midwife decided to travel out of town and jokingly warned her “don’t have the baby.”
However, Jessa unexpected went into labor almost two weeks early and didn’t feel comfortable entering the hospital to be helped by “a random person.”
She called the midwife who had delivered her first babies, and delivered at home. She says she took castor oil beforehand because her water had broken but contractions were not starting. “I did the smallest amount. It did not give me any side effects,” she said. However, she warned listeners the idea was not medical advice, saying, “Don’t go do this!”
Jessa Says Before Getting Married, Her TV Fame Got Her Lots of Letters from Hopeful Suitors
Jessa talked about how she and her sisters would get flooded with letters from men hoping to date them. The men would write things like “I’m your Prince Charming” and even send photos of themselves, she says.
Ben says when he got his chance with Jessa, he was only “a little bit” intimidated by her father, Jim Bob. He says he told himself, “What’s the worst that could happen? If he doesn’t like me and he says no, then I’m just – I’m still single. And just move on from there.”
“I like that,” Jessa replied. Matt then joked if Ben had struck out with Jessa, there were still “multiple other daughters.”
Ben said while the process of being vetted by Jim Bob was “stressful,” he appreciated Jim Bob’s efforts to “look out for his girls.” He also says he understands why Jim Bob might wonder if a guy was just out “for the publicity.”
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Jessa Duggar Seewald Announces Her Seventh Pregnancy