Washington DC - Former First Lady Michelle Obama recently opened up about why she has been evading the public eye, and shut down rumors that she and former President Barack Obama may be divorcing.

During a recent appearance on the Work in Progress podcast, Michelle discussed how she now has the ability to control her own schedule and make decisions for herself now that she and her husband aren't as involved in politics.

"I get to look at my calendar, which I did this year... 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," Michelle explained.

She went on to say that while she still finds time to attend events and give speeches, her choice to step away from the public sparked some unsavory rumors about her marriage.

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"That's the thing that we as women, I think, we struggle with like disappointing people," she continued.

"I mean so much so that this year people... couldn't even fathom that I was making a choice for myself that they had to assume that my husband and I are divorcing."

Since Barack left office in 2017, rumors have circulated online – especially in right-wing circles – that he and Michelle may be having marital issues, as both have notably been seen less in public, and when they are, it is rarely with each other.

Earlier this week, Barack seemed to add fuel to these rumors by revealing that his time in office had caused him to fall into "a deep deficit" with his wife, and he is still "trying to dig myself out of that hole."

Michelle has detailed some of the problems her husband's time in office brought to their relationship in her memoir Becoming but insists that this time, theorists have it wrong.

In her podcast interview, Michelle added, "This couldn't be a grown woman just making a set of decisions for herself, right? But that's what society does to us."