Kailyn Lowry has spent basically her entire adult life in front of a camera. We've seen her buy houses, graduate college, and navigate the chaotic waters of co-parenting seven kids with four different dads. But there is one figure in her life who has remained almost entirely in the shadows: her own father, Raymond Lowry.
Honestly, if you only casually watch Teen Mom, you might not even know his name. He isn't like the other dads on the show who show up for reunions or get into Twitter spats. He was just... gone. For most of Kailyn's life, Raymond was a ghost, a "deadbeat" by her own blunt description, and a source of deep-seated abandonment issues that have clearly rippled through her own relationships.
The 16 and Pregnant Meeting That Went Nowhere
You might remember that one awkward episode of 16 and Pregnant. A very pregnant, very stressed-out Kailyn decided to track down her father in Texas. She was looking for a connection, maybe a place to stay, or just a reason to believe she wasn't alone in the world.
It was painful to watch.
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They met up, and it was clear from the jump that they were strangers. There was no magical movie moment where he stepped up to be the grandpa Isaac needed. Instead, it was just two people who shared some DNA sitting in a house that felt way too small. Kailyn later admitted she felt they had absolutely nothing in common. He didn't offer the support she was desperate for, and she left Texas feeling more alone than when she arrived.
Why the Silence Lasted for Decades
After that brief MTV appearance, Raymond basically vanished again. Kailyn has been incredibly open about the fact that he didn't send birthday cards. He didn't call. He didn't try.
In her book Pride Over Pity, she dug into the grit of her childhood. With a mother, Suzi, who struggled with alcoholism and a father who simply wasn't there, Kailyn was effectively an orphan while both her parents were still breathing. It's a heavy burden for a kid. She’s mentioned that when she finally did find him at 17, his response was a chilling: "I knew you’d come find me one day."
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That's a lot to process. It places the entire emotional labor of the relationship on the child, which is honestly pretty messed up.
The Recent Health Crisis and the "Dead Dad’s Club"
Fast forward to late 2025 and early 2026. The narrative around Kailyn Lowry's dad took a dark and sudden turn. On her Karma & Chaos podcast, Kailyn dropped the bombshell that Raymond was in hospice with stage 4 COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease).
She didn't sugarcoat it. She talked about "joining the dead dad’s club," a term she used with her co-host to describe the looming loss. But the grief wasn't simple. How do you mourn someone who was never really there?
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- The DNA Mystery: Kailyn revealed she actually tried to get a DNA test from him in 2019. She has long suspected that the man she grew up thinking was her grandfather might not be her biological match.
- The Refusal: Even at death’s door, the relationship remained complicated. She sent him a test; he refused to take it.
- The Unanswered Questions: She’s expressed a lot of anger lately. She wants to know why he didn't try harder. Why he gave up on her and her sister.
It’s layered. It’s messy. It’s human.
The Impact on Her Own Parenting
It’s impossible to look at Kailyn's life and not see the shadow of Raymond. People love to criticize her for having multiple "baby daddies," but when you grow up with zero stability, you often spend your adulthood trying to build the family you never had. Sometimes that means making mistakes. Sometimes it means being "fiercely independent" to a fault because you learned early on that you can't count on anyone else.
She’s stated she won’t be attending his funeral. That might sound cold to some, but for someone who was abandoned for thirty years, it’s a boundary. She did plan to visit him in Dallas one last time to get those answers, though whether she got them remains between her and the universe.
What This Means for Fans
If you're following this story, it's a reminder that fame doesn't fix foundational trauma. Kailyn Lowry’s dad represents a hole in her life that no amount of MTV money or podcast downloads can fill.
What you can do next:
If you are navigating similar abandonment issues or dealing with an estranged parent in hospice, it’s okay to feel "conflicted" like Kailyn. Seeking a therapist who specializes in Complex PTSD (C-PTSD) or attachment theory can help you process why you feel "mad" and "sad" at the same time. You don't owe an abusive or absent parent a "perfect" ending just because they are sick. Set your boundaries and stick to them, just like Kailyn is doing with her choice to skip the funeral but seek her own version of closure.