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Sophie Grégoire Trudeau shares the big understanding that can make democracies healthy again

In an Upworthy excusive, Canada's "unofficial" first lady shares the root of political dysfunction.

Sophie Grégoire Trudeau at the White House.

Going through a divorce is one of the most psychologically stressful things someone can experience, right after the death of a spouse (and divorce is a sort of death of its own). But for mother of three Sophie Grégoire Trudeau, her split with Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has been even more devastating because it happened on the world’s stage.

The 2023 breakup resulted in Grégoire Trudeau experiencing chronic stress, so she turned to the yoga mat and self-regulation to find strength through the painful transition. "I have never been more attuned and caring of my mental health than through this whole process," she told Yahoo Canada. "I have been pushed to dig into my authenticity and to put my attachment issues aside.”

Grégoire Trudeau documented her struggles and triumphs in a recent memoir, Closer Together: Knowing Ourselves, Loving Each Other, where she discusses living with an eating disorder, confronting difficult truths, and finding a deeper connection to herself. Ultimately, it’s a story about overcoming adversity to live a more authentic and fulfilling life.

Sophie Grégoire Trudeau and Justin Trudeau

 Sophie Gr\u00e9goire Trudeau, Justin Trudeau, Canada, Prime Minister, Hamburg Justin und Sophie Trudeau at the Global Citizen Festival in Hamburg. via Frank Schwichtenberg/Wikimedia Commons

On June 24, 2025, she shared her journey at Aspen Ideas: Health during a discussion called “Sophie Grégoire Trudeau: A Personal Wellness Journey.” After the talk, she sat down with Upworthy to share a fascinating connection she made between mental health and politics: healthy democracies require citizens who feel safe in their bodies.

How to create healthy democracies

“Feeling safe in our bodies is a primal need. We all want to feel safe in our bodies. So, if you look at Abraham Maslow's pyramid, safety and having food on your table, a roof over your head—if safety is not there, it's game over for everything else. So, physical safety and emotional safety allows for better human connection. Better human connection means healthier democracies,” she told Upworthy.

She adds that when we are in survival mode, we don’t have time for our deeper needs and lack the bandwidth to develop or practice tolerance and empathy towards others. “You will not be thriving, but you'll be in more of a survival state, and when you're in that mode, your body is doing what it needs to save you. So you don't have much more energy and acceptance or tolerance to give to anyone.”

 Sophie Gr\u00e9goire Trudeau, White House, Melania Trump, Washington DC, first lady Sophie Grégoire Trudeau and Melania Trump.The White House/Wikimedia Commons

When we lack the space for empathy, it becomes harder to understand others, which can throw us into an unending loop of negativity. This can lead to constant rumination about how others are making your life miserable. “It goes on and on and on and on, and it never stops, and then you go and consume something on TikTok or on social media that is about how it's others' fault all the time. 'Well, of course you're miserable, it's their fault,' so that reinforces your rumination process.”

Once people stop showing compassion and empathy for one another, the entire democratic process, from how we discuss issues and culture—whether at our kitchen tables or on social media—is affected. The good news, according to Grégoire Trudeau, is that just like negativity can spiral out of control, positivity can do the same. “A negative loop will reinforce a negative loop, but a positive loop will reinforce a positive loop," she told Upworthy. “So, from a psychological perspective, we can help the brain do that by watching what we consume to stop the negative rumination process.”

The connection Grégoire Trudeau makes between politics and safety is a valuable reminder to all of us who wish to engage in the democratic process while promoting healthy discourse. How we engage with the other side in a debate reveals a great deal more about us than it does about them. When we find ourselves engaging in negativity or refusing to listen to another person’s needs, it may be a clear sign that there’s a significant problem we need to address within ourselves.

  - YouTube  www.youtube.com  

via The Kelly Clarkson Show

Former First Lady Michelle Obama was clear about who's had a tougher time dealing with their daughters, Malia, 22, and Sasha, 19, leaving home to go to college.

"Oh, my husband," she said of former President Barack Obama. "He was weeping and ... he still is like, 'They left me!'" Michelle was totally ready for them to go off to school. "I was like, 'Kick them out the door,'' she joked.

Malia is currently a senior at Harvard and Sasha is a sophomore at the University of Michigan.

However, once the Obamas started getting used to the next phase in their lives, COVID-19 hit and the kids had to move back home and study online.


Now, Michelle has to fight to keep track of her makeup and clothes while Barack simply enjoys his daughters' company.

Michelle Obama Says Barack Obama Is Having A Tough Time As An Empty Nesterwww.youtube.com

"It's like, 'Get out of my closet!'" she said. "And he's also a man, so they're not borrowing his makeup. They're not stealing his, you know. I can't find anything with these little women in my house. They're always sneaking into my room, and I'm like, 'What are you doing? What are you taking? Put that back!'"

So, once again, Michelle couldn't wait for her kids to go back to school. "I'm like, 'When does school get back in session? When can they go back to those dorms?" Michelle said.

Michelle's perspective on her children is a bit different than her husband's. She played a more active role in their upbringing because Barack was busy performing the most difficult job in the world. "I spent all my time with them, he was President," she told Kelly Clarkson.

The Obamas walk their dog, Bo.via Wikimedia Commons

Last year, Michelle told Oprah Winfrey that raising two children in the Washington limelight was no easy task, so sending them off to college was an incredible relief.

"Parenting takes up a lot of emotional space … I put a lot of time and energy into parenting these girls but right now we are trying to make their lives normal — so that means weekends were a pain," she said.

"We had to worry about what parties they were going to, whether there was alcohol, I had to know who the parents were, so every weekend for me was hard," Michelle said.

"And they're gone, thank God," the "Becoming" author joked.

The fact that Barack Obama has suffered a greater feeling of loss than Michelle after their kids left the nest isn't a rare thing. Studies show that somewhere between 20 to 25% of parents get Empty Nest Syndrome (ENS), after their kids move out, and it affects men almost as often as women.

People with ENS experience a profound feeling of loss after their children have left the home. It can lead to depression, alcoholism, identity crisis, and marital problems.

One of the best ways for people to overcome the loss of their children at home is to get out and start new projects and the Obamas have excelled at that. Barack just launched a new podcast with Bruce Springsteen called, "Renegades: Born in the USA" and Michelle has a new children's TV called "Waffles + Mochi."

Just over a month after passing the grim milestone of 400,000 deaths from COVID-19, the United States has surpassed another one. As of today, more than half a million Americans have been lost to the virus that's held the world in a pandemic holding pattern for almost a year. It's a number that seemed unfathomable even six months ago, and yet here we are.

Despite increasing vaccine rollouts allowing us to see the light at the end of the tunnel, the loss we've experienced is immense. Having a president who not only understands loss on a personal level—having endured the tragic loss of his wife and baby daughter earlier in life and the death of his son just six years ago—but who conveys with compassion the grief of the nation as we mark this milestone is a comforting change.

Tonight, the White House honored the 500,000+ lives lost with a display of 500 candles lining the steps of the building, with each candle representing 1000 Americans. The president and first lady, along with the vice president and second gentleman, held a memorial moment of silence outside the South Portico as a military band played "Amazing Grace."


Prior to the candle ceremony, President Biden spoke to the nation about the importance of marking this milestone, offered words of empathy and caring to those who've lost loved ones, and shared a message of unity and hope.

Biden started by sharing that he receives a card each day that he keeps with this schedule in his pocket that shows how many Americans have been infected with or died from COVID-19.

"Today we mark a truly grim, heartbreaking milestone: 500,071 dead," he said. "That's more Americans who have died in one year in this pandemic than in World War I, World War II, and the Vietnam War combined. That's more lives lost to this virus than any other nation on Earth. But as we acknowledge the scale of this mass death in America we remember each person and the life they lived. They're people we knew. They're people we feel like we knew. Read the obituaries and the remembrances. The son who called his mom every night just to check in, the father's daughter who lit up his world, the friend who was always there, the nurse who made her patients want to live."

"While we've been fighting this pandemic for so long, we have to resist becoming numb to the sorrow," he said. "We have to resist viewing each life as a statistic or a blur or one the news. We must do so to honor the dead, but equally important, care for the living that are left behind. For the loved ones left behind, I know all too well. I know what it's like to not be there when it happens. I know what it's like when you are there, holding their hands as they look in your eye and they slip away. That black hole in your chest, you feel like you're being sucked into it. The survivor's remorse, the anger. The questions of faith in your soul..."

Biden spoke directly to those who are grieving lost loved ones, sharing what he's learned through his own experiences of loss.

"To heal, we must remember," he said. "It's important to do that as a nation. For those who've lost loved ones, this is what I know: They're never truly gone. They'll always be part of your heart. I know this as well—and it seems unbelievable—but I promise you the day will come when the memory of the loved one you lost will bring a smile to your lips before a tear to your eye. It will come, I promise you. My prayer for you is that they will come sooner rather than later. And that's when you know you're gonna be okay. You're gonna be okay."

Biden spoke about finding a purpose worthy of the lives our loved ones lived and asked all Americans to remain diligent about social distancing, masking, and getting vaccinated when it's your turn.

"We must end the politics and misinformation that's divided families, communities, and the country, and that's cost too many lives already," he said. "It's not Democrats and Republicans that are dying from the virus. It's our fellow Americans, it's our neighbors, our friends, our mothers, our fathers, our sons, our daughters, husbands and wives. We have to fight this together, as one people."

"Let this not be a story of how far we fell, but how far we climbed back up," he said. "We can do this. For in this year of profound loss, we've seen profound courage from all of you on the front lines. I know the stress, the trauma, and the grief you carry. But you keep us going. You remind us that we do take care of our own, that we leave nobody behind, and that while we've been humbled, we've never given up. We are America. We can and will do this."

Biden's whole speech is worth a watch. You can find it in its entirety along with the memorial candle ceremony here:

Biden Holds Memorial For 500,000 U.S. Covid Deaths | NBC Newsyoutu.be

Thank you, President Biden, for marking this milestone with such compassion and for offering heartfelt words of wisdom and experience to those who are suffering the loss of loved ones to this virus. That empathy is what we've been desperately yearning for, as our shared humanity is the only thing that will get us through the crises we face without doing further damage to our nation.

President Trump has exited the White House as the first president in 100 years to not have a pet. President Biden is bringing the presidential pets tradition back, but with a special "first" of his own.

Champ and Major, the Bidens' German shepherds have officially moved into the White House, with Major being the first rescue dog to live there. The Bidens adopted the now 3-year-old good boy from the Delaware Humane Association in 2018.

Anyone who's ever moved with a pet knows that transitions can be tenuous. New sights, smells, and sounds, in addition to the change in routine, can be stressful for animals. And when you're a human who is not only moving into a new home, but also starting a new job as the president of the Untied States, you might need a little time to adjust right along with your pets.

That's why the Biden family took some time to fully transition their two dogs into the White House this week. Though the president and first lady moved in on January 20, the first doggos didn't officially move in until five days later, after a gradual introduction to the building and grounds to get them used to their new home.

They sure do look happy to be with their people in The People's House now, though.


There are even social media accounts dedicated to the DOTUS on Twitter and Instagram, including The First Dogs of the United States and the oh-so-punny The Oval Pawffice.

(The COTUS reference here refers to Winston, the Bidens' granddaughter Naomi's cat. Winston will serve as First Cat until the Bidens bring in a kitty of their own, which they've talked about doing.)

Much has been made of First Doggos during the presidential transition. Major had an honorary "Indoguration" that raised more than $200,000 for the Delaware Humane Association. And The Oval Pawffice even shared a "Pawnstitution" that reads:

"We the Pets of the United States, in order to form a more purrfect Union, establish mixed breed equity and fur color Justice, ensure domestic and wild Treatquility, provide for the common pawtection, pawmote the animal Welfare, rescue and adoption, and secure the Blessings of Liberty of Nom Noms to ourselves and our pawgenies, do pawrdain and establish this Pawnstitution for the United Pets and Wildlife of America."

Not only that, they even shared their oath: "We do solemnly woof / meow that we will faithfully execute the pawffice of President of the United Pets, and will to the best of our pawbility, preserve, pawtect and defend the Pawnstitution of the United Pets and Wildlife of America."

Goodness.

The last president to not have a pet in the White House was William McKinley, who was assassinated in 1901. When President Trump was asked about not having a dog, he replied that he didn't have time.

Too-busy-for-a-dog seems like odd reasoning from someone who played 261 rounds of golf while president and who theoretically could afford to hire someone to take care of a pet's every need while still enjoying the companionship and happiness that pets bring, but okay.

People are going gaga over the return of first pets to the White House, for both the light-hearted fun of it as well as the care and compassion that they represent. There's just something comforting in seeing people's bonds with their animals, and it's clear that Champ and Major are attached to their humans. Science has also shown that dogs can sense when a person is untrustworthy, so seeing the leader of the country happily hanging out with dogs is a good sign.

Welcome to the White House, Champ and Major. Glad to see such good boys at our president's side.