What Life Is Like For Amy Duggar King Today

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The following article mentions child sexual abuse.

Life for the Duggar family has changed drastically since "19 Kids and Counting" — then titled "17 Kids and Counting" — first premiered on TLC back in 2008. For one, there have been numerous Duggar controversies that fans will never forget. Most notably, in 2022, eldest Duggar child Josh Duggar was sentenced to nearly 13 years in prison after being found guilty of two charges of receiving and possessing child pornography. Following the verdict, Josh's cousin, Amy Duggar King, became one of his most outspoken critics. "I hope every day there is absolute torture for him," she told People. "He deserves every second in there, and I hope he gets a longer term."

King, who is the only child of Jim Bob Duggar's sister, Deanna Duggar, and her husband, Terry Jordan, has always been an outsider in her family. While appearing on the reality TV show that made the Duggars famous, King was often singled out for following different rules. Even so, she managed to stay true to herself and has gone on to build a life that makes her happy, if not her strict relatives. That being said, it hasn't always been easy or perfect. Here's what Amy Duggar King's life is like today, from the ups to the downs.

Amy Duggar became Amy Duggar King in September 2015 when the 28-year-old said "I do" to Dillon King in front of 400 guests at Arkansas' Horton Farms. Three years later, the couple was ready to grow their family with Amy cheekily telling Us Weekly in 2018, "We're practicing, we're not preventing." Their efforts soon paid off and Amy confirmed on Easter Sunday in April 2019 that she was expecting. "BABY KING IS ON THE WAY!!!" she wrote excitedly on Instagram.

Keeping fans in the loop on her pregnancy journey, the reality star revealed their chosen baby name that July: Daxton Ryan. Recounting how they arrived at said moniker, Dillon told People that all the men on his side of the family have a name that starts with the letter "D." As for the middle name, Amy enthused, "Ryan stands for Little King — it's adorable!"

Daxton was born on October 9, 2019, via C-section. Amy shared additional details about that decision with fans on Instagram, admitting she was nervous to go in for surgery but noting she had little choice. "With my small frame and the fact that the Dr. said there's an 85% chance I'd have an emergency situation, we went ahead and scheduled a cesarean," she explained. Despite her worries, the procedure was successful and Amy immediately embraced motherhood. "My heart skips a beat every time he wraps his hand around my finger," she gushed on Instagram while celebrating her son's first birthday. "My heart is yours, sweet baby boy!"

As the only child of Jim Bob Duggar's sister, Deanna Duggar, Amy Duggar King often appeared on "19 Kids and Counting." However, she was most often portrayed as the black sheep of the family because she didn't follow the same strict rules as her uncle's kids. Indeed, King herself recognized she was an outsider, once confessing on TV, per Us Weekly, "I hate being a rebel Duggar."

Even so, rather than allowing herself to be moulded to her extended family's expectations, she pushed them away. Speaking with ET in 2020, King said she wished them the best, but that's where their relationship ended. "I'm doing things differently and I'm happy where I'm at," she proclaimed. "I have freedom and it is wonderful." She shared a similar sentiment on Instagram with a not-so-cryptic post that proclaimed, "It's OK to cut off toxic family for your own wellbeing."

Indeed, King has been super vocal about her family's wrongdoings and time hasn't softened her stance. In fact, she made the decision to keep her young son away from much of her family. "I don't know if he's ever really going to get to know them, which I hate to say," she told ET Canada (via People) in 2023. Speaking of Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar specifically, she slammed them for covering up Josh's Duggar's sexual abuse confession. "I feel like that trust is completely broken," she fumed. "If you're not going to protect your kids or your children back in the day, I'm going to protect mine."

Despite being estranged from most of her family, Amy Duggar King has maintained a close bond with one of her cousins, former "Counting On" star Jill Dillard (née Duggar). As she told ET in 2020, "Jill and I text, not on a daily basis, but we text quite often, and we discuss things." Indeed, the duo appear to have a lot in common. For one, Jill also distanced herself from the Duggar clan, telling fans on Instagram in 2024 (via Newsweek) that she had been estranged from her parents for years. Although she did share, "I feel like we are in a rebuilding phase now, with healthy boundaries still in place."

Even so, she had no qualms about joining Amy to share their truth in the Prime Video docuseries "Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets." However, the strength of their union was really put on display in April 2024. Just days after Jill and her husband, Derick Dillard, revealed they had a stillborn birth, Amy was seen stepping up to help and offer her cousin support. Taking to Instagram, Amy shared a snap of her son alongside Jill's three boys, seemingly taking care of them to give Jill and Derick time to themselves. "I got some fun boys today," Amy captioned the photo, per Monsters & Critics.

Of all the Duggar family members who are active on social media, Amy Duggar King is one of the most prolific. Indeed, her life is an open book and so, when her husband was faced with a scary medical emergency in April 2025, she took to Instagram to let fans know. Posting a snap of Dillon King hooked up to an IV inside a doctor's office, she wrote, "We are facing some possible life threatening medical concerns." Days later, she shared further details with People, revealing that Dillon was diagnosed with a severe diaphragmatic rupture. As she explained, it's "an extremely rare and dangerous condition that has caused vital organs, including his kidney and parts of his digestive system, to shift into his chest cavity." According to Amy, doctors had found a tear in his diaphragm that was almost 4 inches and were honest about the fact that recovery was not guaranteed. "The risks are high, the procedures complex," she said. "We are taking this one moment at a time, clinging to hope, prayer, and the wisdom of the medical teams who are now walking this road with us."

According to the National Library of Medicine, diaphragmatic injuries are not really common and usually appear in under 1% of patients who have suffered some sort of traumatic injury. Most often, said injuries are stab and gunshot wounds, although a diaphragmatic rupture can also happen following a serious car crash or fall. It is unclear what caused Dillon's particular injury.

Shortly after sharing details of Dillon King's health diagnosis, Amy Duggar King was accused of trying to profit off her husband's illness. "You asked for privacy but gave a People magazine interview?" went one snarky Instagram comment. Well, Amy wasn't having it and took to Stories to set the record straight. "It is so sad to me how people think that I could stoop so low," she slammed (via Us Weekly). "To think that, like, if you click on the link to read what Dillon's diagnosis is, that I get paid." Amy was adamant that she didn't earn anything from her interview and underscored the fact that all she wanted was support for Dillon. "It's just a story that People magazine put out and I am grateful for that," she reasoned. "Because there's a lot of people who read that, that will pray for him, that will lift him up."

It wasn't the first time that Amy directly responded to critics. In October 2020, just days after her son celebrated his first birthday, Amy took to Instagram to share a DM she received telling her to have more kids. "Pick up the pace, you should have been pregnant again like yesterday," the message read. Listing the various health struggles she experienced during her pregnancy, Amy also noted that she was an only child but that, most importantly, no one should judge another's body. "Some women are designed not to have large families — I am one of them," she concluded.

Amy Duggar King often broke the Duggar family's strict rules, which soon landed her the nickname Crazy Cousin Amy on "19 Kids and Counting." It may have appeared all in good fun at the time, but that label actually cut deep. Speaking with People in 2024, King admitted she was dubbed the "OG black sheep Duggar" because of what she wore and how she acted and, given her young age, she bought into it. "I believed what I was told," she told the mag. "You're like, 'Well, I guess I am a bad seed.'" That, in turn, led to low self-confidence and mounting insecurities until, one day, her faith helped her realize that she wasn't actually a bad person. "It's really sad that I believed it about myself," she mused, but noted that her family likely didn't know any better. "I feel like they did not know how to handle someone that wasn't like them — they had to have a villain," she said.

Once she found her confidence, King didn't let go. Just four months after giving birth, she put her self-love on full display with a motivational Instagram post. Showing off her post-baby tummy, she encouraged new moms to embrace and be proud of their new figure, even if it didn't look like a model's. "Your body is powerful and made you a mother," she praised. "Forget society's standards on what is beautiful!"

The King family ventured into hospitality in 2020 when Dillon King opened his own establishment called Wellington's. Blending a restaurant, cigar lounge, and poker room, it was a diverse offering that initially called Springdale, Arkansas, home before moving to Rogers in 2023. Despite mostly solid reviews, Wellington's eventually closed its doors for good following mounting legal drama. In January 2025, The U.S. Sun learned that King and his business partners had been sued by their Rogers landlord over $86,683.30 in unpaid rent. According to the outlet, King eventually reached an agreement with the landlord and was due to pay $50,000. As he only made half that, he was found to be in breach of contract and a court ordered him to pay $236,728.08 (minus the $25,000 he had already forked over), as per the terms of his settlement.

While King fought the judgement, he was simultaneously embroiled in another lawsuit over the original Springdale location. While Wellington's moved to Rogers in July 2023, the lease on the first property didn't run out until December 2023. The landlord sued for unpaid rent, then changed their claim to include alleged damages and alterations. Ultimately, King was ordered to pay another $156,909.96, per The U.S. Sun.

Following in the footsteps of her friend and cousin, Jilly Duggar, Amy Duggar King decided to write her own book. The topic first came up in 2023 when fans asked King if she ever planned to pen a memoir. "I have been contacted by publishing companies, so I just need to see if it's the right fit," she teased, per The U.S. Sun. "I do believe my story could help so many people — so many conversations and situations to be told." When some critics clapped back, noting King shouldn't get a book deal because she wasn't part of the core Duggar family, she quickly put them in their place. "Although I didn't live at the big house, I grew up all around it," she argued. "It would be a juicy one."

Ultimately, Christian publisher Zondervan agreed and a listing for King's book showed up on Amazon in early 2025. Titled "Holy Disruptor: Shattering the Shiny Facade by Getting Louder with the Truth," it had an October 2025 release date and promised to tell how King distanced herself from the Duggar family to live the life she wanted. According to the official synopsis, her decision made her a so-called "holy disruptor" and the book planned to help guide others to do the same.

If you or anyone you know has been the victim or sexual assault or child abuse, help is available:

• Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
• Contact the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child (1-800-422-4453) or contact their live chat services.