'It Was a Trauma Bond': Jordan Turpin Opens Up About Past 'Toxic' Relationship

Jordan Turpin is reflecting on how far she’s come since escaping the "House of Horrors" in January 2018.

Turpin, now 23, gained national exposure after escaping from the home of her abusive parents in Perris, California, when she was just 17.

“It’s been a hard journey. I’m okay now but I come off strong all the time and want people to know they are not alone thats why I made this video,” she began in the lengthy caption to an Instagram Reel on Tuesday.

The footage shows clips of Turpin experiencing various emotions — crying in some moments, smiling in others.

She revealed in her caption that she plans to write a book where she can describe her past experiences. “I’m so blessed I made it out,” she added.  

In addition to enduring unimaginable torture at the hands of her foster family, she also had a particularly jarring past romantic relationship, Turpin said.

“I got stuck in a bad toxic relationship. Only two of my sisters were there for me,” she wrote in her caption.

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She claimed that during that time, she also "ended up in the hospital because my health was failing."

“I had to go to therapy to see why I kept going back to him and I learned it was a trauma bond,” Turpin continued. 

The Texas native continued to share brief descriptions of other stories her readers can expect to learn about once her book is complete. 

Turpin claimed that at one point, her family got “really jealous” of her, which only added to her problems. 

“They took advantage of me, bullied me, made up lies, stole from me and when they didn’t need to because they had more than me. I was at my lowest and -

‘You Gotta Let a Girl Make Her Own,...

they saw that but still didn’t care,” her caption read.

Turpin's parents, David and Louise Turpin, were sentenced to life in prison after they pleaded guilty to 14 felony counts following their 2018 arrest.

After Jordan and her 12 siblings escaped from the Turpins, the six youngest siblings were placed in another foster home under the care of Marcelino and Rosa Olguin. There, they alleged they were sexually and physically abused by Marcelino, Rosa and their adult daughter Lennys.

They filed two separate lawsuits against Riverside County and a private foster care agency in July 2022, claiming the defendants were aware the Olguins were "unfit to be foster parents" because the family had a "prior history of physically and emotionally abusing children as well as severely neglected children who had been placed in their care."

The lawsuits further alleged that the Olguins would force the siblings to eat excessive amounts of food until they threw up.

The Olguins have pleaded not guilty and a preliminary hearing is scheduled for March 29.

Once she transitioned out of the foster care system, Jordan spoke exclusively to PEOPLE in 2022 about her new chapter.

"Sometimes I walk into my apartment and literally think, 'Is this real?' I'm more independent and can just be myself. This is everything I ever wanted," she said about having a safe place to call her own. "I've been feeling like my life is about to actually start."

If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.

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