Michelle Obama says she's begun therapy as 'tune-up for next phase'

Former first lady Michelle Obama, 61, revealed in a recent interview that she is in therapy as she adjusts to life as an "empty nester" outside of the White House.

"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," Obama told life coach Jay Shetty in an episode of his "On Purpose" podcast last week. "I now don't have the excuse of, well, my kids need this, or my husband needs that, or the country needs that."

Obama and the former president have two daughters who are now in their twenties. She started a lifestyle podcast in 2020 with her brother, Craig Robinson, who joined her for the interview with Shetty.

Opening up about her journey through different stages of life, she said she's always sought ways to share her challenges — from seeking out minority groups as a Black student on predominantly white Ivy League campuses to joining fellow moms of young children regularly on Saturdays "opening a bottle of champagne and shedding our feelings and our fears and exchanging ideas."

"I believe in the power of sharing your challenges with other people that you trust, and that can come in many forms, and it has for me," Obama said. "I think we need to be coached throughout our lives, and I think therapy is a form of coaching."

"I'm in therapy right now because I'm transitioning, you know, I'm 60 years old. I've finished a really hard thing in my life with my family intact," she added.

Since leaving the White House nearly a decade ago, Obama has addressed rumors of marital strife and a period during the COVID-19 pandemic that she described as "low-grade depression."

She also explained in a recent podcast episode her decision to skip Trump's second inauguration earlier this year.

"It took everything in my power to not do the thing that was right or that was perceived as right but do the thing that was right for me," she said. "That was a hard thing for me to do."