{"id":2113,"date":"2026-07-15T20:02:34","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T20:02:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/?p=2113"},"modified":"2026-07-15T20:02:34","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T20:02:34","slug":"janet-zitting-meet-janet-zitting-the-woman-who-has-44-siblings-she-felt-totally-normal-growing-up-in-polygamy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/?p=2113","title":{"rendered":"Janet Zitting: Meet Janet Zitting, the woman who has 44 siblings; she felt \u2018totally normal\u2019 growing up in polygamy"},"content":{"rendered":"


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\"Meet<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Pic courtesy: Instagram\/ Janet Zitting<\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

It was a regular afternoon. Janet Zitting was around eight or ten years old. She was hanging out with the neighbour\u2019s child. In the middle of the conversation, she asked, \u201cOh, so how many mums do you have?\u201d The other child looked perplexed. \u201cWhat do you mean? I only have one mum.\u201d Zitting walked away from that conversation feeling sorry for the child. One mum seemed impossibly lonely.Zitting, now 32, grew up in a family that practised polygamy<\/a>. She was raised by her father and four mothers, including her biological mother. And she has 44 siblings. Her family was part of a polygamous group called The Work, an offshoot of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, led by Warren Jeffs.Janet Zitting\u2019s video, in which she introduces some of her 44 siblings, is blowing up on the internet. Netizens have opinions, obviously, but for Zitting, it\u2019s just another Tuesday.<\/p>\n

A family of 50!<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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\"Representative<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

In the video that\u2019s going viral, Zitting introduces herself as \u2018kid number 25\u2019. Then there is Betty, \u2018kid number 18\u2019, and Pam, \u2018sibling number 3\u2019. And there is Lee, \u2018sibling number 2\u2019. The list goes on. Zitting, of course, remembers all their names. How can she not? They all grew up together under the same roof.Zitting was born into a household so large that private space barely existed. She shared a bedroom with seven sisters, and during one stretch of home construction, as many as 16 children crammed into a single room. She found her own workaround: a blanket closet became her personal napping spot, the closest thing to solitude she could find. But she didn\u2019t feel this arrangement was anything out of the ordinary. \u201cFor me, it was totally normal growing up this way. But when I talk to other people, it\u2019s like a reminder of how it\u2019s not their normal too, so it gives me that perspective,\u201d Zitting told USA Today. \u201cIt was very secretive when I was a child. So, as I became an adult, it felt pretty freeing to talk about it.\u201dIn the United States, polygamy, or being married to more than one person, is illegal; however, it is decriminalised in Utah. Zitting\u2019s family was part of the group The Work, and polygamy was not uncommon among its members.Zitting left the group about 13 years ago and is the first of her siblings to do so. According to her, half of her siblings follow the group, but the other half have left. \u201cA lot of people ask if I had to escape, but I just told my parents that I was moving out. It was hard in the beginning just because when you first leave a religion like that, everyone\u2019s so passionate about it, so they think you\u2019re making a mistake. But I knew I wasn\u2019t. I just knew that it wasn\u2019t for me,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The internet is curious<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n

Janet Zitting is now one of the most recognisable faces on TikTok. Her videos on growing up with 44 siblings have taken the platform by storm. Many are curious about how the whole family structure works, and Zitting is patiently answering their questions.\u201cThe reactions just make me laugh because people are shocked. Some people are saying it\u2019s AI. Some people are saying there\u2019s no way. But it\u2019s just funny that my life, what is normal to me, can have such a big reaction,\u201d she said.According to Zitting, one of the common questions people ask is whether she can remember her siblings\u2019 names. Yes, along with their birthdays. What\u2019s the age gap between the oldest and the youngest? Forty-eight years down to 15.She and her siblings also have a group chat where they discuss life, like any others. \u201cWe have a sibling group chat, a sister group chat, and then there are a lot of other side chats,\u201d she revealed.<\/p>\n

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\"Janet<\/p>\n

Pic courtesy: Instagram\/ Janet Zittiing<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Growing up with 44 siblings<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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\"Representative<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

While it is fun to have 44 siblings, being part of such a huge family also had its downsides. Feeding and raising that many children took a village that happened to already live under one roof. Cooking, cleaning, gardening, tending livestock, watching the younger children: it ran on a constant rotation, everyone pitching in because the household simply didn\u2019t function otherwise. A single Costco run around the holidays, she recalled, could cost about $1,500. The parents didn\u2019t throw birthday parties or celebrate Christmas. Her parents said it was \u2018worldly\u2019; however, looking back, Zitting thinks it had more to do with what the family could actually afford. Even now, as adults, her siblings mostly save celebrations for milestone birthdays, the 30ths and 40ths.<\/p>\n

Life on her own terms<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n

Zitting is a mother now. She has a child with her husband. She hopes to have maybe one or two more children; that\u2019s it. \u201cI don\u2019t plan on having a million kids because I raised some of my younger siblings and I nannied a lot, so I feel like I already had children of my own in a way,\u201d she said.Janet Zitting is now living life on her own terms. She describes herself as spiritual rather than religious these days. However, she does not have any ill feelings towards the group or the siblings who have chosen to practise it. \u201cThe religion was really controlling for me, for the type of person that I am. It felt like I was in a box. So I\u2019m really happy I\u2019m not a part of that any more, even though the religion is for a lot of my family\u2026 I\u2019m just happy I realised that it\u2019s not for me.\u201dShe has a close bond with her siblings. No wonder they agreed to show up in her viral video. \u201cA lot of them really are truly my best friends, and I love how close we all are, especially my sisters. I\u2019m even closer with them, and they\u2019re just all so loving, so kind, and they\u2019re so beautiful inside and out. And I love how family-oriented we are.\u201d<\/div>\n


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Pic courtesy: Instagram\/ Janet Zitting It was a regular afternoon. Janet Zitting was around eight or ten years old. She was hanging out with the neighbour\u2019s child. In the middle of the conversation, she asked, \u201cOh, so how many mums do you have?\u201d The other child looked perplexed. \u201cWhat do you mean? I only have […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2114,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2113","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-31"],"magazineBlocksPostFeaturedMedia":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/janet-zitting.jpg","medium":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/janet-zitting.jpg","medium_large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/janet-zitting.jpg","large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/janet-zitting.jpg","1536x1536":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/janet-zitting.jpg","2048x2048":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/janet-zitting.jpg","blogsy-small":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/janet-zitting.jpg","blogsy-small-tall":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/janet-zitting.jpg","blogsy-small-square":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/janet-zitting.jpg","blogsy-small-masonry":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/janet-zitting.jpg","blogsy-medium":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/janet-zitting.jpg","blogsy-medium-masonry":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/janet-zitting.jpg","blogsy-large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/janet-zitting.jpg","blogsy-wide":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/janet-zitting.jpg"},"magazineBlocksPostAuthor":{"name":"admin","avatar":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8709732a479614e7a8aa24d3eb1b239f30dc6d90c61464ed495001e7a469d856?s=96&d=mm&r=g"},"magazineBlocksPostCommentsNumber":"0","magazineBlocksPostExcerpt":"Pic courtesy: Instagram\/ Janet Zitting It was a regular afternoon. Janet Zitting was around eight or ten years old. She was hanging out with the neighbour\u2019s child. In the middle of the conversation, she asked, \u201cOh, so how many mums do you have?\u201d The other child looked perplexed. \u201cWhat do you mean? I only have […]","magazineBlocksPostCategories":["\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36 \u0b2c\u0b3f\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36"],"magazineBlocksPostViewCount":10,"magazineBlocksPostReadTime":6,"magazine_blocks_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/janet-zitting.jpg",400,225,false],"medium":["https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/janet-zitting.jpg",300,169,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/janet-zitting.jpg",150,84,false]},"magazine_blocks_author":{"display_name":"admin","author_link":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/author\/admin"},"magazine_blocks_comment":0,"magazine_blocks_author_image":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8709732a479614e7a8aa24d3eb1b239f30dc6d90c61464ed495001e7a469d856?s=96&d=mm&r=g","magazine_blocks_category":"\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36 \u0b2c\u0b3f\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36<\/a>","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2113","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2113"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2113\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2114"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2113"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2113"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2113"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}