Hannah Gosselin is distancing herself from family drama after the release of her brother Collin Gosselin’s bombshell memoir.
“I’ve decided to take a step back from the situation going on considering I haven’t lived with my dad in over a year and haven’t spoke [sic] to Collin in close to a year,” Hannah, 22, wrote in a TikTok Story on Wednesday, October 21.
The former reality TV personality continued, “Having said that, I have had a relationship with my mom and other siblings for quite a few years now. And that’s the only thing I’m clearing up.”
Hannah added, “Beyond this, I will not be commenting on Collin’s behavior growing up or my experiences growing up with him.”
Hannah and Collin, along with their sextuplet siblings, Aaden, Joel, Leah and Alexis, and older twin sisters, Mady and Cara, 26, grew up in front of reality TV cameras on the TLC show Jon & Kate Plus 8. The show, which aired from 2007 to 2017, documented the kids and their parents, Jon and Kate Gosselin, as they navigated life as a family of 10. (Following Jon and Kate’s 2009 divorce, the series was renamed Kate Plus 8.)
In his memoir, In the Shadow of Eight: Surviving the Reality of My Childhood, Collin recalls his experience growing up on reality TV and explores his estranged relationship with Kate, 51, whom he claims was physically and emotionally abusive. Over the years, he has alleged that Kate kept him zip-tied in a basement, forced him to take various medications and hit him and his siblings. Kate has repeatedly denied the allegations.
In 2016, Collin was sent away to Fairmount Behavioral Health System, a psychiatric facility in Philadelphia. He spent two years at the institution, during which time he claims he was visited only once by his mom. He claims that Kate sent him away to prevent him from speaking out about her alleged abuse. Kate has refuted the claim, insisting that Collin displayed dangerous behavior as a child.
“My son Collin, whom I love with all my heart, has received multiple psychiatric diagnoses over the years,” she said after Collin spoke out in a 2023 ViceTV interview. “For the safety of myself, his brothers and sisters and for his own well-being, he was placed in a facility following years of outpatient treatment which proved insufficient for his needs.”
She continued, “All measures that were taken in our home were at the explicit recommendation of his pediatric psychiatrist and/or his team of specialists and were put into place to safeguard every member of our family, our friends as well as our family pets.”
In his book, Collin writes that he reached out to Jon, 49, asking for help while he was at Fairmount. Jon, 49, gained custody of Collin upon his release from the facility. Meanwhile, Hannah chose to live with her dad and brother, citing a desire to establish a closer one-on-one relationship with Jon.
Following Collin’s book release earlier this month, Kate took to TikTok to defend her parenting choices.
“I know rational logical [people] or anyone who has dealt with mental illness understands what’s going on here,” she wrote, later adding, “I had nothing to do with it, except for consent because it was medically necessary.”
Jon responded in an exclusive statement to Us, “First and foremost, I couldn’t be more proud of my son’s heartbreaking memoir and his mission to help other victims of abuse. “Also, let me be very clear: If you continue to falsely label my son Collin as ‘mentally ill,’ you will be held accountable. As you know, Collin has been evaluated by multiple independent psychiatrists, and that narrative is proven categorically untrue.”
He added, “Repeating false claims about his mental health is damaging to his reputation, his credibility and his future.”
While Hannah claimed she has not spoken to Collin in nearly a year, Netflix announced on Wednesday that the two siblings and their dad are currently filming a documentary about their time on Jon & Kate Plus 8.
