NEED TO KNOW
- Libby Greenstone went viral on TikTok for sharing her take on motherhood
- She spoke to PEOPLE about why she thinks women should wait to have children
- Greenstone had her first child at the age of 37 and her second at 42
For many women in their 20s and 30s, the societal pressure to adhere to a specific timeline can be overwhelming, whether it be related to marriage, children, or career milestones. The feeling that time is running out can be suffocating and all-consuming.
One mother recently went viral on TikTok for her advice on life, sparking an online conversation that resonated deeply with women feeling uncertain about their next steps.
In the video, Libby Greenstone, 70, highlighted that “there’s no hurry,” reassuring viewers that being in your 30s is not “late,” but rather a beautiful and transformative time in life.
Greenstone had her first child at the age of 37 and her second at 42. She insisted that having children later on gave her time to “live a lot of life,” offering her stability and maturity when it came time to start her family.
“I think when you have children in your 30s, you spend some good time on yourself and your spouse or partner, and you are ready to share your knowledge, your love, your energy, and your joy in living a beautiful life,” Greenstone tells PEOPLE exclusively. “Certainly in your 20s you can do the same, but for me, I just simply think I was better established in my career and really, really ready.”
In the video, Greenstone emphasized that raising children isn’t a sacrifice of energy but rather an investment in something deeply fulfilling.
“I am a high-energy person to begin with. I was raised in a household where family was everything,” she explains. “It was always about us as kids, as far as my mom and dad were concerned. Being raised with that philosophy and mindset made it very easy for me to have the energy, the passion, the joy, the excitement in every stage with my children.”
This mindset helped her navigate the late nights, the exhaustion, and the challenges of balancing work and family life.
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Despite the significant age gap between her and her daughters, Jolie and Katie Greenstone, she takes pride in the strong bond they share – a relationship rooted in quality time.
“We always played together from the time the girls were little. I was in the sandbox with them, so to speak,” the mother of two says. “We did everything together on the weekends, whether it was gardening or shopping or going out to brunch or exercising together…we did it together.”
This deep connection continued as the girls grew older, and even now, as adults, they still make time to nurture their relationship with their mother. “Consequently, we like doing the same things at later stages in life, and we enjoy each other so much it just is a natural fit,” Libby adds.
Her daughter Katie, now 28, was moved by her mom’s advice, especially as she navigates her own timeline.
“It’s cool because having these conversations as I round out my 20s really felt timely for me,” Katie tells PEOPLE. “Once I realized that the knowledge she was dropping on me felt important for others to hear, who may be in the same boat as I am — 28, not married, no kids. It’s like a wave of relief knowing she had just met my dad then, and she turned out with this beautiful life despite not getting an early start in the way society’s pressures tend to try to box us into.”
The video’s impact was felt far beyond their immediate circle and Katie was taken aback by the responses online, especially from women who found solace in her mother’s perspective.
“It showed that there’s a big hole in our day-to-day rhetoric as women, where this type of dialogue not only opens the conversation, but fills it in a way my mom did, and a way we needed… with words of comfort,” Katie adds.
“Beyond that, just so wild how many shared the experience of having kids in late 30s and 40s, and how many women in their 20s, reading the comments, didn’t even realize that was in their realm of possibility because of the misinformed conversation that our ‘clock’ ticks out in our early 30s.”
For those who feel behind, the video provided a sense of reassurance, offering a new narrative about the possibilities of life. The TikTok was more than just a conversation between a mother and daughter – it was a window into the pressures women face and the freedom that comes with letting go of timelines.
Read the full article here