Divorce rates are booming for older Americans, setting a trend researchers call 鈥済ray divorce.鈥� The reasons behind this increase are varied: people are living longer, divorce stigma has decreased and women are more financially independent.
No matter the cause, leaving a decades-long marriage is a big life upheaval. Host Anita Rao gets personal accounts from two gray divorcees about what it was like to rebuild their identities, finances and freedom post-divorce.
, the host of the podcast 鈥淒ating While Gray,鈥� discusses finding her sense of self beyond the labels of 鈥渨ife鈥� and 鈥渕other.鈥� She shares insights from her research into gray divorce and her chats with other older folks about love and dating in the later years of life.
, a literature scholar, award-winning author and educator, talks about how her divorce finally pushed her to sort out her issues with money 鈥� and the role that writing a divorce story played in the outcome of her divorce.
Both Laura and Stephanie share the hardships and the new opportunities found in the divorce process, and they discuss why women initiate divorce most often in heterosexual partnerships.
Special thanks to and for sharing their thoughts for this episode!
Please note: This episode originally aired August 16, 2024.
Update: Stephanie鈥檚 guide to writing your divorce story and her class on the same topic was featured on .
