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German Woman 65 Update: Quadruplets Born Makes Mom World’s Oldest To Birth Quads

By Bradley Ryder
Published on: 04:16 PST, May 23, 2015

After 26 weeks of pregnancy, a German woman, 65, made history by giving birth to quadruplets via Caesarean section Tuesday. Annegret Raunigk, already a mom of 13, and her four new premature babies are resting comfortably. The child births by the woman in Germany is a record; according to a Yahoo News report, at 65-years-old, the mother is the world’s oldest to have quads.

The Berlin woman headlined news back in April when sources learned she wanted to expand her family. Reportedly, Raunigk underwent artificial insemination when her 9-year-old daughter pressed her on having a baby brother or sister, according to a previous Inquisitr report.

The 65-year-old woman was criticized by readers back then on social media about the dangers of having quadruplets, let alone babies in general, due to her advanced age. The German native said that she is fully aware that she runs the risk of having a high-risk pregnancy.

However, the teacher, who plans to retire this year, pledged to live a healthy lifestyle for her growing babies. Besides, after having 13 kids of her own and being a grandmother to seven, Raunigk says she can go the distance with the experience she has with motherhood.

The doting mother gave birth to three boys — Bence, Dries, and Fjonn — and a girl named Neeta. According to Germany’s RTL, doctors say the infants have a “good chance of surviving.” Nonetheless, they were cautiously optimistic, according to the report.

“However, the babies, in comparison with a normal birth in the 40th week, are not completely developed, so eventual complications can’t be ruled out.”

Bild am Sonntag, a local tabloid, spoke with the German woman about her original feelings on being pregnant with quadruplets at 65. She said when physicians informed her that she was expecting quads, she was in a total state of shock.

“After the doctor discovered there were four, I had to give it some thought to begin with.”

There was pressure for the woman to use “selective abortion” to reduce the numbers of fetuses in order to minimize health risks for her and the babies. The thought was that it would allow some to thrive instead of the delivery ending up in a tragedy. The mom-to-be stood firm and had no second thoughts about aborting any of the babies.

“I’m not actually afraid. I simply assume I’ll remain healthy and fit. In matters of organisation I have enough experience, that’s not new for me.”

“How does one have to be at 65? One must apparently always fit some cliches which I find rather tiring. I think, one must decide that for oneself.”

Even at 55, when the woman gave birth to her 13th child, a daughter named Lelia, she came under harsh criticism for being too old. Again, she ignored the backlash and focused on being the best mom she could be.

“At first, I only wanted one child. Not all were planned. But then things happen. I’m not a planner but rather spontaneous. And children keep me young. You can never know what will happen. Things can also happen to you when you’re 20,” she said, adding that it’s up to each individual to decide when they become a parent.”

At 65, the German woman who gave birth to quadruplets is in rare air. But when should a woman draw the line in the sand — if at all?

[Photo by China Photos/Getty Images]

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