If You're a Woman Exhausted by #MeToo, Read Michelle Obama's Advice

Michelle Obama

@michelleobama / Instagram

Una Dabiero
Una Dabiero
If Michelle Obama could be my best friend, I would be cool with that. Could you imagine her helping you through a breakup? The woman always knows what to say, and she gives the best advice. I mean, she was basically America's life coach for 8 years. Remember when she tried to save all of us from childhood obesity, despite no one (*cough* big fast food) wanting her help? She's a  saint. 
Luckily for us, Michelle hasn't slithered off to some mansion with her mounds of money and whatever's left of her peace of mind. She's stayed pretty active in the political scene, and she's still giving us killer advice. Her latest interview was full of reassuring words for women exhausted by the latest developments in the  #MeToo movement. 
Between Brett Kavanaugh's nomination and a new celebrity being outed everyday as an assaulter, it's been a tough few weeks. But Michelle thinks we can keep the ball rolling. 
"Change is not a direct, smooth path. There's going to be bumps and resistance. There's been a status quo in terms of the way women have been treated, what their expectations have been in this society, and that is changing," she said.
And when it comes to dealing with pushbacks on women being treated as equal to men – like the #HimToo trend or the Alt-Right showing up increasingly on Twitter – Michelle says to look to the future. 
"There's going to be a little upheaval, a little discomfort, but I think it's up to the women out there to say, 'Sorry. Sorry that you feel uncomfortable, but I'm now paving the way for the next generation.'... Enough is enough."
She feels a special connection to the next generation as a mother, and encourages moms everywhere to share their stories and stand up for what's right in a kind way. 
"When they go low, we go high," she said. ""I have to think about that as a mother, as someone who is a role model to young girls. We want them to grow up with promise and hope, and we can't model something different if we want them to be something better than that."
No matter how exhausting it is, #MeToo is making cultural change. It's important to remember that. But it's also important to remember that prioritizing your personal and mental health is also important. Michelle would want you to take a break from organizing and advocating when you're feeling burnt out, or just generally bad. And she would probably advise you to take a break from Twitter forever (just saying!).
 Just don't take a break on November 6th, promise? Ok. Thanks dolls.