Michelle Obama is getting real in the latest episode of her podcast Michelle Obama: The Light Podcast with her brother Craig Robinson, opening up about emotional wounds, grief, friendship, and yes, healing. Her words hit a little differently now, especially with those persistent rumors about trouble in her marriage to Barack Obama, her husband of 32 years
Michelle and Craig were joined by Las Culturistas hosts Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers, answering a fan’s question about how to make new friends. What started off as advice turned into a deeper conversation about the messy parts of relationships, including the tough moments Michelle and Craig have had themselves.
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She shared how one of their worst fights happened after their father passed away in 1991. Craig admitted it was a “hurt fight,” but they both recognized that pain came from grief. Michelle added, “Don’t be afraid of people and friendships or hurt because that’s just a part of it, and there’s something really beautiful on the other side of that hurt.” Her message? You survive. You grow. You come out the other side stronger.
“You get over it, you move on, you learn from it,” she said. “The thing you learn about yourself at 35, 36, 37 is that you have that sensitivity. It takes a minute of practice to say, ‘okay, that yelling wasn’t about him, it was about me.’”
Her message to the listener was clear — building relationships takes effort, planning, and vulnerability. And yes, sometimes you’ll get hurt. But that’s okay.
“It requires a plan, and it requires you executing against the plan, and you’re going to get hurt, and it’s okay — you will heal from it, and you will grow from it, and it’ll be alright,” Michelle shared with conviction, reported the Daily Mail.
Her deeply personal insights come as people continue to speculate about the state of her marriage. Michelle raised eyebrows after skipping several key events where Barack was present, like former President Jimmy Carter’s funeral and Donald Trump’s most recent inauguration. Naturally, the internet did what it does best — assume the worst. But Michelle explained she’s simply being more intentional with how she spends her time these days.
And she’s not shying away from self-care either. During a recent conversation on Jay Shetty’s On Purpose podcast, Michelle spoke candidly about going to therapy, both as an individual and with Barack.
“I believe in therapy, I believe in couples therapy, I believe in it all,” she said. “Whatever works for you.”
She revealed she’s currently in therapy again, this time to help her through a major life shift.
“I’m 60 years old. I’ve finished a really hard thing in my life with my family intact. I’m an empty nester. My girls have been launched.”
Michelle opened up about stepping into a new chapter — one where she’s no longer filling her calendar based on what her family or the country needs.
“I now don’t have the excuse of, ‘Well, my kids need this’ or ‘My husband needs that’ or ‘The country needs that.’ So, I’m getting that tune-up for this next phase because I believe this is a whole ‘nother phase in life for me. And I now have the wisdom to know, let me go get some coaching while I’m doing it.”