New York Post spoke to Enitza Templeton, who said tradwife life left her unprepared for divorce after 35. By 36, she was a mother of four and felt trapped in a marriage that had pushed aside her own plans, including a career in art.
Templeton, now 43 and based in Denver, Colorado, said she gave up those ambitions to satisfy her husband’s commands. She said her biggest challenge after the marriage ended was navigating life without a solid education, professional résumé or real-world experience.
Templeton described the routine inside that marriage in blunt terms: she grew the family’s produce in a private garden and dressed in sexy outfits and cosmetics before her husband came home from work. She also said, “At a certain age, I got to a point in the marriage where I was like, ‘Oh my god, is this really what I want to do with my life? What comes after this?”
Jessica Valenti and the online reaction
The discussion widened after Jessica Valenti asked on social media, “Where are they hiding all the 47-year-old tradwives? Why are they not out there espousing how amazing this lifestyle is?” More than 2 million people watched Valenti’s video, and more than 4,000 women ages 35 and beyond digitally responded about the pitfalls of dependence on a partner.
Templeton said, “There aren’t a lot of tradwives over 35 or 40 because they’ve either got divorced and moved away from the lifestyle after learning how toxic it can be.” She added that older women are often “keeping their heads down, gritting their teeth and waiting to die because that’s all there is left for them. That’s their only escape.”
Samantha and the wider warning
One comment beneath Valenti’s video came from Samantha, who wrote: “Married at 20, divorced at 38. Raising 7 kids. No job history, no college, no experience.” Her note echoed Templeton’s account of how dependence can leave women exposed when a marriage ends after years outside paid work and formal training.
Templeton’s story adds a concrete example to that warning: a marriage that began at 26, a divorce by 36, and a later attempt to rebuild without the tools many people acquire earlier in adulthood. The open question now is how common that outcome is for tradwives over 35, because the online response shows the fear is not limited to one woman’s experience.
