William warns ‘stiff upper lip’ can damage mental health

LONDON: Prince William has warned British men that keeping a “stiff upper lip” by bottling up emotions was detrimental to mental health, stepping up an awareness campaign that includes a video chat with Lady Gaga.

The comments by Queen Elizabeth’s grandson came a day after his younger brother Prince Harry spoke about his struggles coping with the loss of his mother Diana in an unusually revealing interview.

The princes, together with William’s wife Kate, are spearheading a campaign called Heads Together that encourages people to open up about mental illness and seek help.

“There may be a time and a place for the ‘stiff upper lip,’ but not at the expense of your health,” William said in an interview the Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM), a charity dedicated to preventing male suicide.

The British phrase “stiff upper lip” describes an ability to keep emotions under control whatever the circumstances.

Suicide is the biggest killer of men under 45 in Britain, and William said seeing the impact of suicide through his work as an air ambulance helicopter pilot had been a “tipping point” in his decision to campaign on mental health issues.

Gaga has gone public with her own struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after she was raped aged 19.