'I Was Making A Choice For Myself...': Michelle Obama Talks About Divorce Rumours

Michelle Obama addresses rumors of marital problems and explains her recent absence from high-profile events as a decision for self-care and control over her schedule.

Former US President Barack Obama and former US first lady Michelle Obama

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Former US first lady Michelle Obama discussed stepping back and making time for herself on a podcast released on Tuesday.

Michelle discussed her recent absence from high-profile political events in an interview with actress Sophia Bush on the 'Work In Progress' podcast. She clarified that her decisions have been motivated by self-care rather than marital conflict.

Her absence earlier this year from occasions like former President Jimmy Carter's funeral and President Donald Trump's second inauguration raised rumours that the Obamas were having problems. The most prevalent rumour implied that she was on the verge of splitting from former US President Barack Obama.

"I now have the opportunity to control my own calendar and can now make a choice for myself", Michelle said, CNN reported.

“I could have made a lot of these decisions years ago, but I didn’t give myself that freedom,” she said. “Maybe even as much as I let my kids live their own lives, I use their lives as an excuse for why I couldn’t do something."

She added, “And now that’s gone. And so now I have to look at my — I get to look at my calendar, which I did this year, was a real big example of me, myself looking at something that I was supposed to do — you know, without naming names — and I chose to do what was best for me, not what I had to do, not what I thought other people wanted me to do.”

What Michelle Obama Said About Divorce Rumours?

Michelle pointed out that the irrational divorce rumours were caused by people's incapacity to tolerate a woman merely expressing her independence.

She said, “That’s the thing that we as women, I think we struggle with like disappointing people. I mean so much so that this year people were, you know — they couldn’t even fathom that I was making a choice for myself that they had to assume that my husband and I are divorcing.”

Even though she stepped away from some public roles, Michelle Obama claimed to be involved in causes that were important to her. She stated she continued to work on girls' education, delivered speeches, and work on other issues.

At a rally in Michigan before the 2024 election, she said: "Please, please do not hand our fates over to the likes of Trump, who knows nothing about us, who has shown deep contempt for us.

The Obamas have been together for 32 years and are parents to two daughters.