Reality Star Son Accuses Mother of Burying Him to Protect Her Image

Clear Facts

• Collin Gosselin, 22, claims in his memoir that his mother Kate Gosselin physically abused him, isolated him, and forced him onto psychiatric medication as a child.
• Collin has not spoken to Kate since he was 13 and says any reconciliation requires her apology and accountability.
• Collin is now appearing on the fifth season of FOX’s “Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test” as an adult contestant.

Collin Gosselin is publicly accusing his estranged mother, Kate Gosselin, of trying to “bury” him to protect her reputation. The 22-year-old former child star made the claims while promoting his new memoir, “In the Shadow of Eight: Surviving the Reality of My Childhood.”

In an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital, Collin stated he has not spoken to Kate since he was 13. He said he would need an apology and accountability before considering any reconciliation.

“I’d like an apology, simply put, an apology and for her to admit, and just take accountability for what she did,” Collin said.

“And to say, you know, ‘I’m sorry that I’ve soiled your name, and I’ve made every effort to bury you, to protect my reputation,’ I think that’d be very honest and very powerful for her to say that … just show accountability because everything she’s done to protect her reputation, it’s all been at my cost.”

In the memoir, Collin alleges he endured physical abuse, isolation, and forced psychiatric medication during his childhood. He compared his time in a treatment facility to being sent to juvenile detention and said the experience left lasting scars.

Collin said he held on to hope even during his darkest moments. “I had very little hope, but I always had some, and I hung on to that … I just kept telling myself that there’s a better future for me and there will be a time where I will be past this,” he said.

The former child star said sharing his story had weighed on him for years. “It was heavy on my heart, my whole life, but especially now, it was just, I just felt like it was the time to do that,” he said.

Collin recalled a painful final memory from a visit by his mother when he was 13. “She berated me for all of 20 minutes after not seeing me for over a year,” he said.

He described the effects of the psychiatric medication he claims he was forced to take, saying it left him feeling like a “zombie.” Collin portrayed his childhood away from the cameras as deeply isolating.

Despite the estrangement, Collin said he has not ruled out taking a call from Kate. “Reconciliation requires action and accountability,” he said.

“I think we can all say, ‘I’m sorry,’ but if we’re not willing to take the actions and take accountability for what has happened in the past and what happened my entire childhood, then what does that really mean, you know?”

Collin said he remains open to hearing from his mother. “I think I’d take the call out of curiosity and just to hope that maybe she would admit to the things that she did to me when I was a child,” he said.

Collin is now stepping back into the spotlight on his own terms as a contestant on the fifth season of FOX’s “Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test.” He said the appearance carries special significance after growing up on reality television. “It was so powerful to be able to come back to TV on my own terms as an adult and rather than being a young child being pressured to perform on the daily,” he said.

He also stressed that children should have a say in whether their lives are broadcast to the public. “When a child does not want to be on TV, that should be their decision to make. And we should let them make that decision,” he said.

Collin’s memoir, “In the Shadow of Eight: Surviving the Reality of My Childhood,” is out now.

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