Miss Independent! Find Out Where Jana Duggar Is Now After ‘Shiny Happy People’ Documentary

Staying out of it. Jana Duggar, the second oldest child of Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, has kept quiet following the release of Amazon Prime Video’s Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets documentary, in which sister Jill Dillard (née Duggar) and cousin Amy King (née Duggar) expose the abuse and control the Duggar kids experienced growing up. While other family members have shared their thoughts on the four-part series, Jana hasn’t spoken out, leading many fans to wonder what she’s been up to recently.

Is Jana Duggar Married?

Many of Jana’s 18 siblings have gone through the process of courting and getting married, as seen on the Duggar family’s now-defunct TLC shows, 19 Kids and Counting and Counting On. Despite being the second oldest child, though, Jana has remained single. There were rumors in January 2021 that she had been courting a pilot from Nebraska named Stephen Wissman, but the whispers fizzled out.

Fans shouldn’t worry about Jana’s relationship status, though. She basically said as much in a September 2020 episode of Counting On.

“Sometimes it can get a little, like, what? It’s not the only thing in the world to talk about,” she insisted while addressing fans’ interest in her love life and her singlehood. “As for now it’s nice, I get to do a lot of different things.”

Still, that doesn’t mean she isn’t hoping for love someday. Jana later said, “I mean, I wouldn’t mind it. There are those moments with, like, all the different couples are hanging out.”

Where Does Jana Duggar Live Now?

Jana is still living at the Duggar family compound owned by her parents in Tontitown, Arkansas. Jim Bob and Michelle once revealed on Counting On that their kids were allowed to move out once they reached 18 years old, but some, including Jana, have decided to stay and save money. Jana also explained to a fan in 2019 that she had no issues bunking with her younger sisters as an adult.

“Actually, I’ve had the choice to move to another room but love being in the girls’ room with my sisters!” she wrote. “The evenings are the best. We sit around talking and catching up on each others’ [days].”

However, since then, Jana has reportedly moved out of the main house and into a tiny home on the property. This way, she has her own space.

What Does Jana Do for a Living?

When Counting On was canceled in 2020, many fans wondered how the Duggars would fill their time and make money outside of reality TV. In Jana’s case, that meant becoming a “home remodeler,” as she once called herself in her Instagram bio.

That job title is no longer listed on Jana’s page, but she seems to still have a passion for home decor projects. She once gave her parents’ bedroom a makeover, and she transformed Jinger Vuolo’s (née Duggar) closet during a visit to Los Angeles in 2023.

In addition to being a remodeler, Jana is an author, having cowritten the book Growing Up Duggar with sisters Jinger, Jill and Jessa Seewald (née Duggar) in 2014.

What Happened to Jana Duggar?

Jana made headlines in September 2021 when she faced a misdemeanor child endangerment charge due to an incident that happened while she was babysitting. She was not arrested for the incident, but she did go to court, where she pleaded not guilty. In December that year, Jana set the record straight on what happened, revealing that one of the children she was looking after had wandered outside. A concerned neighbor found the child and called the police.

A child welfare investigation found that it was an accident. Jana later settled the charge outside of court.

Did Jana Duggar Leave IBLP?

The Duggar family has long been associated with the Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP), a non-denominational Christian religious organization formerly led by Bill Gothard. Jill and Jinger have gone public with their decisions to leave the IBLP, but what about Jana? She has broken the strict dress code of the IBLP several times. However, Jana hasn’t indicated that she has left the IBLP.

In September 2023, Jill released her memoir, Counting the Cost, in which she shared her perspective on the Duggar family’s fame, their involvement with the IBLP and her relationship with Jim Bob. Her book included the revelation that Jim Bob and Michelle allowed Jana to become one of “Gothard’s girls” while they were growing up.

“We were new to the inner workings of IBLP, but we knew enough already to understand why it was only Jana who was invited,” Jill recalled in the book. “She was the only elder Duggar girl who was blond, and everybody knew that Mr. Gothard liked blond girls. We’d joke about it, calling Jana one of ‘Gothard’s Girls.’ It didn’t occur to me at all how strange, unsafe, and unwise it was.”

Following the revelation, a fan asked Jill during a Q&A session on YouTube if she was “worried” about Jana and other siblings potentially still being involved with the IBLP today.

Jill responded, “I don’t know. I try and not meddle too much in my siblings’ lives. I don’t know where they’re all at. … I’ll let them tell their story or figure it out themselves. I think anyone that’s grown up in IBLP, it’s definitely a process, and it’s one that’s very hard to come away from and kind of sort through.”