How Jana Duggar Broke Her Family’s Courtship Rules With Husband Stephen Wissman

Jana Duggar is the latest of the many Duggar children to break a few of the rules for courtship onlookers have expected from the family. According to Us Weekly, the Counting On star shared a video capturing the early days of their romance, including a video of her surprising him at work.

In the clip, Duggar and two of her younger sisters drive to Nebraska to meet with her now-husband Stephen Wissman. The video still calls him her boyfriend, but the surprise was intact. It also shows that the Duggar daughter isn’t following the rules at this point.

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In the clip, both run toward each other and embrace in a front-facing hug. They hold hands while driving and Duggar is even wearing jeans in the clip, all going against the reported courtship rules under Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar.

According to Us Weekly, this includes dates with chaperones, no hand-holding or public displays of affection, and only greeting with side hugs. The idea that there are differences in hugs might be hard for some to comprehend, but we’re here in 2024 America.

Duggar and Wissman were married earlier in the summer, making her the 12th Duggar sibling to walk the aisle. She gushed about the moment with PEOPLE, saying she had dreamed of the moment.

“For me, it felt like, ‘OK, it’s never coming.’ But now it’s starting to sink in.’ Reality is starting to set in. And I’m like, ‘Wow, this truly is something that I’ve dreamed of.’ And just to see it coming about is incredible and kind of hard to believe. It’s a dream come true,” Duggar told the outlet.

Duggar has since relocated to Wissman’s home in Nebraska. The pair had been longtime friends before the wedding, with Jeremiah Duggar already married into the clan with Wissman’s sister, Hannah.