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Jinger Duggar reflected on the pressure she felt to “perform” and maintain a “perfect facade” early in her marriage to Jeremy Vuolo
The former reality star said she’s now focused on being “more real” and not feeling like she has to put on a front
The couple also looked back on their 2016 wedding day, with Jeremy admitting he was nervous to get married while Jinger said she had “zero fear”
Jinger Duggar and Jeremy Vuolo are looking back on the early days of their marriage, nearly a decade after they tied the knot.
During the Wednesday, June 10, episode of their podcast, the couple reminisced about their wedding day and the very different emotions they experienced before saying “I do.”
When Jinger, 32, asked whether he had been nervous about marrying her, Jeremy, 38, said his jitters had more to do with the significance of the moment than with his bride.
“I was not nervous marrying you. I was very nervous to get married,” Jeremy said.
“You should have been,” Jinger joked.
Jinger Duggar and Jeremy Vuolo.
Credit: Jinger Duggar/instagram
“No, I shouldn’t have been,” Jeremy replied. “All of my wildest dreams couldn’t have compared to what marriage has been.”
Jinger didn’t share those nerves, she said.
“I was super excited for starting life together, and I was not nervous at all to marry you,” she said. “So I had zero fear on the day of our wedding.”
As the conversation continued, the former 19 Kids and Counting and Counting On star reflected on another aspect of their early relationship: the pressure she felt to present a polished version of herself.
“I do think that probably when we got married, there was some of that in me,” Jinger said. “But it was interesting to see, because I think I had a lot of that still in me, where I was trying to perform, have everything together.”
The realization has given her a new perspective on the person she was when she and Jeremy married in 2016.
“Looking at that, I’m amazed that you even married me, because I think it was really God that allowed you to marry me and helped me to see I don’t have to be like that, I don’t have to perform,” she said.
The Duggar family.
Credit: Shutterstock
Jinger explained that while her intentions were genuine, she often found herself trying to meet everyone else’s expectations.
“I think my heart was genuine and wanting to do what was right, but I also had that other side of it, where it was like trying to make everybody happy all the time by trying to have a perfect facade on,” she said.
Now, she said, she is more interested in authenticity than appearances.
“That’s something I’m thankful [for],” she said. “The further into life I go, I want to be more real in that way, and not feel like I have to put on a front.”
The theme of personal growth has also appeared in Jinger’s writing. In January 2023, she published her memoir, Becoming Free Indeed, which she described in a video on her YouTube channel as an account of her spiritual journey.
“This is a book about me and my spiritual journey, a journey of disentangling truth from lies,” Jinger said at the time. “In it, I share stories from my life — stories that nobody saw while the TV cameras were rolling: stories of fear and uncertainty but also of discovery and hope.”
Her second book, People Pleaser, was published in January 2025 and chronicled her journey of breaking free from seeking others’ approval and finding her identity through faith.
Jinger and Jeremy’s relationship has unfolded largely in the public eye. PEOPLE exclusively revealed in July 2016 that the pair were engaged.
Jinger Duggar and Jeremy Vuolo with their two daughters, Felicity and Evangeline.
Credit: Jinger Duggar/instagram
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They married on Nov. 5, 2016, in front of 1,000 guests at the Cathedral of the Ozarks at John Brown University in Siloam Springs, Ark., with Jeremy’s father officiating the ceremony.
The couple welcomed their first daughter, Felicity Nicole, in July 2018. After experiencing a miscarriage the year prior, they welcomed a second daughter, Evangeline Jo, in November 2020. Their first son, Finnegan Charles, was born in March 2025.
Jinger and Jeremy now live in Santa Clarita, Calif., with their three children.
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