Michelle Obama opened up in a strikingly candid interview Thursday, talking at length about her struggle with menopause and the various ways it’s affecting her mental and physical health. She’s changed her fitness routine—focusing on flexibility—and even admitted that she’s slowly gaining weight and saying goodbye to her signature toned arms as she ages. The former First Lady also told People she often is at a loss for where to find reliable information about the topic of menopause—saying she hopes her spotlight can help other women cut through the “misinformation” and conflicting studies that made the topic unapproachable for previous generations. She said she used hormone replacement therapy under the guidance of her doctor to help treat her hot flashes but stressed that even she is still learning. “I’ve had to work with hormones, and that’s new information that we’re learning. Before there were studies that said that hormones were bad. That’s all we heard. Now we’re finding out research is showing that those studies weren’t fully complete and that there are benefits to hormone replacement therapy. You’re trying to sort through the information and the studies and the misinformation. So I'm right there.” She claims her skin “still feels healthy. My hair is still in my head. These are the things that I have to count my blessings for.”
