Melania Trump hasn't been seen in public for weeks and people are starting to get concerned

Leah Millis/Reuters

First Lady Melania Trump participates in a celebration of military mothers and spouses at the White House on May 9, 2018.

• First lady Melania Trump hasn't been seen in public for weeks, and many people are expressing concern about her well-being. 
• The first lady recently underwent a minor kidney surgery, but her office says she's doing "great."
• Melania's lack of public appearances has sparked concern and generated conspiracy theories.  

First lady Melania Trump hasn't been seen in public for weeks, and many are expressing concern about her well-being. 

The fact that the first lady has barely been seen throughout the month of May has been a hot topic of conversation on social media. 

Melania's last public appearance was on May 10, 20 days ago, when North Korea released three American hostages. The first lady joined President Donald Trump as he welcomed the three men back to the US at Joint Base Andrews.

Several days later, on May 14, Melania was checked into Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for what her office portrayed as a minor and "successful" kidney surgery. 

Melania's spokeswoman, Stephanie Grisham, told Business Insider on Wednesday the first lady "is doing great" despite her relatively long absence from the spotlight. 

Last week, as Trump spoke with reporters outside of the White House and faced questions about her whereabouts, he pointed to the first lady's window and said she was doing "great." 

"Right there. She's doing great. Just looking at us, right there," the president said at the time. But no one could be seen in the window. 

Melania's lack of public appearances in recent weeks has many people wondering if she's OK. 

Some have also put forth conspiracy theories about how the first lady is and why she's not been seen, such as that she's moved back to New York City. But the first lady's office has dismissed these theories, claiming she's back at work and has been involved in internal meetings this week. 

Melania's break from public life comes not long after she launched her Be Best campaign, which aims to address societal issues children face today.