Barack Obama has been focusing on his marriage to Michelle Obama since leaving the White House in 2017.

“I was digging myself out of the hole I found myself [in] with Michelle,” he told the crowd during a recent appearance in London, according to the Daily Mail. “Now I’m at about level ground.”

Barack, 64, did not offer any more details about the state of his marriage. However, earlier this year, Barack said that he and Michelle, 61, were in “a deep deficit” after his presidency.

Fans wondered whether there was trouble in paradise for the couple when Michelle did not attend President Donald Trump’s inauguration in January alongside her husband. (She also skipped out on attending President Jimmy Carter‘s funeral that same month.)

Michelle and Barack Obama have been candid about their relationship while constantly shutting down divorce rumors. The former president and first lady tied the knot in 1992. The couple share daughters Malia and Sasha, whom they welcomed in 1998 and 2001, respectively. Michelle previously opened up about why she chooses to be forthcoming about her […]

“People couldn’t believe that I was saying no for any other reason, that they had to assume that my marriage was falling apart, you know?” Michelle said during a May episode of her “IMO” podcast. “It’s like, while I’m here really trying to own my life and intentionally practice making the choice that was right for me.”

During a separate podcast appearance that month, Michelle said that there was never a “full moment” where she wanted to split from Barack.

“The beauty of my husband and our partnership is that neither one of us was ever really going to quit at it ‘cause that’s not who we are,” she shared on the “Diary of a CEO” podcast in May, confirming that they have experienced some ups and downs over the years.

Barack and Michelle tied the knot in 1992. They share daughters Malia, 27, and Sasha, 24.

Barack admitted he wasn’t aware of the split rumors about him and Michelle earlier this year following his two solo appearances.

Michelle Obama shut down rampant speculation that she and her husband, former president Barack Obama, are ending their marriage. “I still care about girls’ education. The library is opening in a year from now, [but there are] certain things I am and am not doing with the library,” Michelle, 61, said on the Tuesday, April […]

“These are the kinds of things that I just miss,” the former president said while on an episode of his wife’s “IMO” podcast in July. “I don’t even know this stuff’s going on, and then somebody’ll mention it to me, and I’m all like, ‘What are you talking about?’”

Michelle made it clear, once again, that divorce was not on the horizon for the couple.

“There hasn’t been one moment in our marriage where I thought about quitting my man,” she said. “And we’ve had some really hard times, but we’ve had a lot of fun times, a lot of adventures, and I have become a better person because of the man I’m married to.”