Jenny McCarthy Had to Defend Her Special Needs Son - He Didn't Even Realize the Kids Were Mocking Him

Many stars focus their entire lives around their careers, sometimes to the detriment of their families. However, Jenny McCarthy took all the time she needed to care for her special needs son.

McCartney has only one son she shares with her ex-husband, John Asher. However, before she became a mom, she was seen as a good-time girl who graced the covers of Playboy Magazine. It was not a persona she could keep up indefinitely.

While she enjoyed that part of her life, in 2004, everything changed for her. Her son, Evan, was diagnosed with autism after suffering from a series of near-fatal seizures. McCarthy shared that watching her son suffer changed her forever.

After that, McCarthy devoted more and more of her time to taking care of Evan, and Asher began to feel ignored by his wife. McCarthy confessed:

"The only fantasies I wanted to imagine were Evan being able to say, 'I love you, Mommy.’"

As a result, McCarthy and Asher's marriage began to crumble, and it was not long before the pair separated. McCarthy shared that Evan was unaware of what was happening at the time and that it was the only time she was grateful for Evan's diagnosis.

She shared that when Asher moved out, he told Evan that he would be living in another house. Evan, who was three then, stared into the distance without acknowledging what was happening.

Once Asher had moved out, McCarthy and Evan were on their own, and the star had to find a way to pay for her son's treatment. She had applied for government funding, but the waitlist was a year long.

McCarthy decided her only choice was to take out a second loan on her house. She shared that everyone she spoke to had either done that or had borrowed money from another source. She quipped:

"Just know if I ever come out with my own dumb perfume line, this is why."

Throughout the next couple of years of Evan's life, McCarthy cared for her son independently, ensuring he got all the love, care, and attention he needed. Eventually, McCarthy met her knight in shining armor.

JENNY MCCARTHY WASN'T A SINGLE MOTHER FOR LONG

While there was a period after Asher left when McCarthy was a single mom, she has not stayed a single mom. However, while single, she found it difficult to raise her special needs son and give him everything he needed.

McCarthy shared one of the most challenging things to navigate was whether or not she should tell her son that he was being mocked. She said that other children mocked him, and when they laughed, he laughed too as he didn't understand the situation.

McCarthy shared that the incident of mockery happened while Evan was on summer camp, and some children coaxed him into putting bugs down his pants. When he did it, Evan was delighted because the other kids laughed.

On the one hand, McCarthy knew that it was a blessing that her son didn't know he was being made fun of, but on the other hand, she knew that she might have to tell him so that other children didn't take advantage of him.

The same year that this happened, Donnie Wahlberg and McCarthy were set to be married. Wahlberg employed the help of then-11-year-old Evan to surprise his mother with a proposal. McCarthy shared that she knew he was "the one."

The couple announced their engagement in 2014 and revealed they would be walking down the aisle in August 2015. McCarthy shared that Evan would be the one to walk her down the aisle.

McCarthy and Wahlberg are now raising their children in a blended family. Wahlberg confessed that McCarthy was a great wife, but she was an even better mother to Evan and stepmother to his children Xavier and Elijah.

Wahlberg welcomed Xavier and Elijah with his ex-wife, Kim Fey. All the children now get along with one another and watch McCarthy and Wahlberg build traditions of their own, which they will carry on to their own families.

McCarthy shared that she was grateful that Wahlberg loved her unconditionally and showed Evan the same love and acceptance. She said she was thankful that Wahlberg swept her and her son off their feet.

While it is challenging for any two families to blend, Wahlberg and McCarthy have done an excellent job. They have even shared what it is like to have a relationship with each other's children.

When speaking about building connections with each other's children, Wahlberg shared that it was terrific, saying:

"We connect with [each other's] kids in a way we haven't connected with our own."

The couple has built strong connections throughout the family, and they all enjoy spending time together even though Wahlberg's children live with his ex-wife. They have managed to build a strong family unit.

Wahlberg shared that the way he connected with Evan was unlike he connected with his children because Evan was much more affectionate than his sons. He said that his sons were more intellectual.

He then revealed that it was excellent for the family because he got to have affectionate moments with Evan. McCarthy could sit down with his sons and have intellectual conversations that she didn't have with Evan.

MCCARTHY AND WAHLBERG DON'T WANT ANY MORE KIDS

Despite the special connection the pair have built with each other's children, they have decided that they won't be having any children of their own and have been open about the reasons for it.

The couple has said they have reached an age where they do not want to have children because they would instead focus all their time and energy on the three children they already have.

McCarthy shared that they are thrilled being a family of five as she and Wahlberg enjoy each other's company and are ready to live out their "golden years" without worrying about raising more children.