Don't Worry, Josie Duggar Is Doing Great

When Josie Duggar, Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar's 19th child, was born prematurely on 19 Kids and Counting, it was a pretty nerve-wracking time for the family... and for most of us watching at home, too. Born at 25 weeks old and weighing just over one pound, Josie's early life was filled with hospital stays and a huge, worried family that wasn't sure if she'd ever get to come home. But eventually, she grew big and strong enough to leave the hospital and having cleared the initial obstacles caused by her early birth, she is now a healthy kid, just like her many brothers and sisters. So how is Josie Duggar today? She's still a healthy child living a normal life — even if there's the occasional bump in the road.

One of those bumps is being featured on Tuesday's episode of 19 Kids and Counting, filmed when Josie had a pretty serious health scare earlier this year. As TLC showed in the sneak peek of the season in February, Josie seized and paramedics were called. As oldest daughter Jana explained in the clip, Josie "seized 15 minutes before paramedics got into the house and then seized the whole way here." Um, that's pretty terrifying.

And if you're as obsessed with the Duggars as I am, this might sound familiar to you, because this isn't the first experience with seizures that Josie's had. Back in 2011, when she was just 18-months-old, Josie had another seizure while Jim Bob and Michelle were out of the country on a mission trip. They rushed back to be with her, and she was quickly well again, but it had to be a pretty scary experience for everyone involved, especially since poor Josie's parents were out of town when it happened.

The good news is that Josie seems to have recovered from her latest seizure. In December, Josie celebrated her fifth birthday at McDonalds — because, let's face it, we've all wanted to party at Micky Ds, at five or 25 — and Jim Bob promised People that she's doing OK.

It's a huge milestone for her at 5 years old, because of course she was in the hospital for six months. She was pretty fragile there for the first six months and even the first couple years. But she's gotten stronger and stronger, and it's hard to hold her down now! We are thrilled with her progress and so thankful to God that she is alive and doing so well.

It's good to hear that she's doing well these days, especially after her most recent health scare. Hopefully, from now on we'll only see sweet, happy moments from Josie — the kind that make her the star of the Duggars' Instagram.

Image: DuggarFam/Instagram