Erin Bates wants another child. The former Bringing Up Bates star confirmed her plans for a potential baby number eight, nearly a year after a health crisis almost ended her life. During an Instagram Q&A on Wednesday, she told followers that expanding her family remains her absolute priority, pushing past the medical trauma that left her in a wheelchair just ten months ago.
When asked directly if she would have more kids without health concerns, her response was instant. “Without a doubt, yes!” she told her audience, according to social media updates. “We both just love kids and consider it our highest calling to raise them to know and love Jesus.”
But her path forward might look different this time around. Bates and her husband, Chad Paine, are actively discussing whether adoption is an option for their future.
The reality star’s medical history is notoriously complicated. In September 2025, a severe urinary tract and kidney infection following the birth of her seventh child, Henry, escalated into septic shock. She ended up in the intensive care unit. Her parents previously noted that the constantly shifting diagnosis deeply puzzled her medical team.
Then came the seizure. It was prolonged and severe enough to temporarily strip the function from her right leg. Bates spent weeks confined to a wheelchair and had to undergo intense physical therapy just to relearn how to walk.
She already battles a well-documented blood clotting disorder. That condition alone has caused multiple miscarriages and forced early deliveries for several of her children over the years. Yet, the drive to build an even larger family clearly outweighs the biological risks for the couple. Online communities and reality TV observers remain highly polarized. Some praise her faith-based commitment to motherhood. Others express intense alarm over the extreme medical risks she continues to take.