Michelle Obama has become an open book when it comes to discussing her family life with her husband, Barack Obama, and their daughters Malia and Sasha.
The former first lady, 61, shared another insight into her life as a mother recently when she spoke about the controversial method she once used to discipline her daughters when they were children.
Spanking
Michelle admitted on a recent episode of her IMO podcast with guests Damon and Marlon Wayans that she disciplined Malia, now 26, and Sasha, now 23, by spanking them.
However, her decision to spank her daughters didn't last long as Michelle admitted she soon stopped after realizing the method "embarrassed" her.
© Getty Images"I felt silly," she said. "It took a couple of spankings for me to be like, yeah, you know what, this is a little kid and the fact that I can't think of any better way to get my point across than to smack somebody on the butt, I felt embarrassed."
While she eased off her particular style of discipline, Michelle was still strict with Malia and Sasha and wasn't afraid to set "boundaries".
"I want to be a proponent for reinstating some of the stuff that we had," she continued.
© WireImage"When kids say, 'I hate my mom', it's like, you better say that in your head, in your room. You don't say that out loud."
She added: "You know, parents are too afraid to set those kinds of boundaries. And I think that's also part of the challenge that we're facing in this generation."
Michelle explained that she felt it was important for her daughters to learn from their mistakes growing up.
© Getty Images"I think nowadays a lot of parents are trying to live their kids' lives for them so that they don't make any mistakes and don't feel any sense of failure, which keeps them from learning," she shared.
"I raised you to have some sense, to have judgment. And at some point, you've got to practice that, which means that I've got to let go."
Michelle's parenting confession comes after she opened up about how it was a "nightmare" keeping Malia and Sasha's teenage antics out of the press while they lived in the White House.
© Getty ImagesGrowing pains
The family moved into 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue once Barack became president in 2009. Malia was 10 while Sasha was seven. They became teenagers during his second term, which ended in January 2017.
Speaking on SiriusXM's Let's Talk Off Camera with Kelly Ripa, Michelle explained: "They became teenagers, and they had to drive, and they had to go to prom.
"They went to parties, and they had drinks, and they tried out smoking and they did all the things, and every weekend was a nightmare because we had to work to make sure that them being regular teenagers didn't wind up on Page Six. So, it was a lot of work," she added.
© Getty ImagesMalia and Sasha now live together in Los Angeles and have carved out their own paths away from their parents.
Malia works in the film industry and made her directorial debut at Sundance in 2024 with her short film The Heart. Sasha graduated from USC in 2023 with a degree in sociology and is now pursuing higher education.
