People with mental health issues urged to ‘speak out’
A MENTAL health expert has urged people not to ‘suffer in silence’ following the revelation that the Duchess of Sussex had felt suicidal during her time with the Royal Family.
The news was unveiled during a US TV interview with chat show legend, Oprah Winfrey, in which Meghan and her husband. Prince Harry, spoke openly about the relationship with other royals, racism and how their mental health had suffered.
The interview was broadcast in the UK last night.
Meghan spoke of how she was on the verge of suicide but was refused help.
She said she felt isolated after joining the Royal Family and claimed she lost all her freedom.
‘When I joined that family, that was the last time until we came here that I saw my passport, my driver’s licence, my keys. All that gets turned over,’ she said.
The former actress said during her isolation had mental health become so bad she ‘didn’t want to be alive anymore’.
‘I went to the institution and I said that I needed to go somewhere to get help, said I had never felt that way before and needed to go somewhere, and I was told that I couldn’t, that it wouldn’t be good for the institution,’ she said.
The stark revelation saddened mental health campaigner Angela Etherington, a champion and co-ordinator at Time to Change in Portsmouth.
She said: ‘It’s awful.
‘This shows mental health is no respecter of anybody.
‘Mental health problems can happen to all of us, leaving you feeling distressed and low and suicidal.
‘The stigma and discrimination that people fear before they seek help is a big one. Sometimes people in certain situations, like the one Meghan was in, feel unable to seek help.
‘This can be around that fear of stigma and discrimination. Sometimes it’s a lack of information about where to go or feeling safe to be able to do that.’
Angela insisted there was plenty of help out there for those suffering a mental health crisis and urged people not to bottle up their emotions through ‘fear of stigma’.
She added: ‘This could be seeking help from the GP as the first port of call, it could be some of the websites online, like Mind’s.
‘Or talking to your friends and family.
‘It’s whatever that feels right for you at the time.
‘But please do speak out, that’s the message.’