Collin Gosselin has detailed allegations of childhood abuse, prolonged isolation and psychiatric institutionalization in a new memoir.
The 22-year-old describes experiences he says shaped his adolescence while growing up on reality television.
He remains estranged from his mother, Kate Gosselin, and maintains a close relationship with his father, Jon Gosselin.
Collin has also called for greater oversight of child performers.
Allegations of Punishment and Confinement
In his book, In the Shadow of Eight: Surviving the Reality of My Childhood, Collin recounts incidents involving alleged physical punishment.
He also describes a basement bedroom that locked from the outside and an incident in which he alleges his mother restrained his arms and ankles with zip ties.
Collin said his experiences differed sharply from the family image presented on the TLC reality show, which followed him and his seven siblings through their childhood.
He alleges that the treatment he experienced occurred when cameras were not filming.
Reflecting on the relationship between his siblings and their mother, Collin said he does not blame them for keeping their lives private or refraining from publicly supporting him.
"My mom fed them so much stuff about me and they didn't see a lot of what happened," Collin told USA TODAY.
He said his siblings attended school while he remained at home, leaving them with different experiences of family life.
"They would go off to school every day. I would be at home.
I would bear the wrath of my mom."
Collin's account includes allegations that Kate repeatedly pulled his ear as a form of discipline.
He said the experience caused him to question whether the treatment he received was appropriate and distinguished what he described as abuse from ordinary parental discipline.
He also recounted spending extended periods in a basement bedroom that allegedly locked from the outside.
According to Collin, weekends were particularly difficult because he could hear his siblings moving around upstairs while he remained isolated downstairs for hours.
He said the periods of confinement sometimes lasted entire days when his mother traveled for work and nannies were instructed to keep him in the room.
Collin further alleged that Kate restrained his arms and legs with zip ties.
He described the incident as a pivotal part of writing his memoir and said he wanted his mother to take a polygraph test to address their conflicting accounts.
Kate has denied the zip-tie allegation, according to Collin, who said she had not accepted his invitation to take a lie detector test.
The allegations have not been independently established in the material provided by USA TODAY.
Collin also described his experience at Fairmount Behavioral Health System, where he said he spent 22 months before leaving in 2016.
He said he was admitted four days before his 12th birthday, when he was actually 11, and repeatedly questioned why he remained at the facility as other children arrived and left.
In a 2023 Instagram post, Kate alleged that Collin had multiple psychiatric diagnoses and that his institutionalization followed an outburst involving a weapon.
Collin began addressing the circumstances surrounding that claim in the USA TODAY interview, saying his mother had hired a friend to visit during the week.
The available source text ends before his explanation is complete.
Jon obtained legal and physical custody of Collin and his sister Hannah Gosselin in 2018.
Their siblings include twins Madelyn and Cara and sextuplets Alexis, Aaden, Joel and Leah.
Collin said he remains close to his father despite his estrangement from Kate.
Representatives for Kate and Fairmount Behavioral Health System did not respond to USA TODAY's requests for comment, according to the outlet.
