When a woman in her late 50s remarried and decided to have kids, she never thought her decision would incur her oldest daughter’s wrath. She lost touch with her daughter and granddaughter but was sure she’d made the right choice.
Some of the most critical decisions we make in life might alter our reality or lead to growing estrangement from our dear ones. Lauren Cohen from Paramus, New Jersey, found herself in similar circumstances but stood her ground despite the odds.
It all began in 2002 when she met someone who left a lasting impression on her. From that moment onwards, Cohen was never the same again and knew that every decision she made would revolve around that particular person.
Cohen had divorced her first husband, Ray, after two years of marriage when she crossed paths with Frank Garcia at a dancing class in New Jersey. Even though he was 20 years her junior, the two instantly fell in love and became practically inseparable. Cohen recalled:
“I never thought he could be interested in a woman so much older. He was a great dancer so I asked him to dance one night and he said yes.”
They married in July 2002, and soon afterward, Cohen began worrying about their huge age gap. She feared that her husband might end up looking after a woman in his 80s and then feel too old to start over. She also wanted her husband to experience parental bliss.
The couple looked into IVF to start a family they yearned for. But because Cohen was in her late 50s, many doctors turned her down. In January 2004, she got a YES from a clinic in Virginia. The clinic gave up on them after four failed IVF cycles.
Surprisingly, Raunigk’s joy multiplied when she welcomed quadruplets, one girl and three boys, via IVF, in May 2015.
It was then that a doctor in New Jersey agreed to help, and the couple became pregnant. In December 2004, Cohen and Garcia welcomed their first girl, Raquel, via IVF. Less than a year after Raquel’s birth, Cohen discovered she was expecting twins.
On May 22, 2006, 59-year-old Cohen delivered twins, Gregory and Giselle, via IVF using donor eggs and became the oldest mother in the U.S. to become a mom to twins. She told PEOPLE:
“I don’t feel like a record holder. Except for arthritis, I’m in excellent shape.”
Her husband and kids became her top priority, and she wanted to stick around as long as she could to see her children attend college. Cohen shared she had to change her lifestyle to ensure she stayed healthy and active.
Changing Her Lifestyle
In addition to doing pilates and yoga, the mom-of-three said she took nearly 100 supplements every week to stay fit. “I take 98 pills a week, a mix of medicine and dietary supplements. I hope they give me long enough,” added Cohen. Some of her medications include vitamin E for the nervous system, resveratrol and curcumin for antioxidants, and vitamin D3 for cancer and osteoporosis.
“I do Pilates every week,” she said. “I don’t want to sit at the park, struggling to move. I want to play with the kids and push them on swings.” Now more than ever, she is fighting to stay alive and healthy.
In a video interview, Cohen shared that people often thought she was her children’s grandma, and she rectified them and said she was an older mother. Ironically, becoming an older mom meant Cohen was disowned by her oldest daughter, Renee. She said:
“Renee was horrified when I told her I was pregnant. She said it was unnatural and abnormal. She then got really upset and started crying, telling me it was improper. It breaks my heart to have mostly lost contact with her. I’m really disappointed, but I had to do it.”
A distraught Cohen shared that her then 32-year-old daughter was “disgusted” by her decision to have kids later in life. As a result, Cohen does not see Renée, and her one-year-old granddaughter, Hannah, as often.
They meet four times a year in a restaurant as Renée promised never to set foot in her mother’s home. “How can I possibly get to know my grandchild inside a restaurant?” Cohen said.
Still, Cohen, who ran a law firm, felt she had made the right choice. Even though Cohen had to learn to be a mother to little ones again, she said she was relieved to know her husband wouldn’t be alone if she died first.
Garcia expressed he was delighted to become a father to twins and couldn’t wait to delve into fatherhood. We hope Cohen and Garcia have a lovely time parenting and their family continues to grow in love.
Another Older Mom’s Motherhood Journey
Like Garcia, a single mom of 13 kids from Germany, decided to have kids at 65. Annegret Raunigk from Spandau, Berlin, shared she wanted to fulfill the wish of her then ten-year-old daughter, Leila. Surprisingly, Raunigk’s joy multiplied when she welcomed quadruplets, one girl and three boys, via IVF, in May 2015.
Sadly, her decision invited massive outrage from people, who criticized her for embracing motherhood at an advanced age. The German woman slammed the critics and said that she solely wanted to concentrate on raising her children.
