Harry’s regret at not talking about mother’s death
PRINCE Harry has spoken of his regret at not talking about the traumatic death of his mother until he was an adult.
At a barbecue for mental health campaign Heads Together, the 31-year-old was asked by ex-England footballer Rio Ferdinand about the impact of the tragedy.
The sportsman’s three children lost their mother – his wife Rebecca – to breast cancer last year.
Harry, who was 12 when Princess Diana died, said: ‘Everything can be OK but I really regret not ever talking about it…for the first 28 years of my life.’
Heads Together has been led by the prince, with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, uniting organisations including Mind to tackle the stigma surrounding mental health. Harry stressed that the problems can affect anyone – winning him praise from charities.
‘The key message here today is that everyone can suffer from mental health, whether you’re a member of the Royal Family, a soldier or a sports star…a white-van driver, a mother, father, a child … everyone can suffer,’ he told BBC Breakfast.
Harry did not say whether he had sought counselling or whether he had ever suffered from depression.
He added: ‘All these guys here, everyone’s got a different story…but for people to turn round and go, “oh you’re in that position therefore you’re fine” is a completely ridiculous suggestion.’
Also at the Kensington Palace event were ex-cyclist Victoria Pendleton, cricketer Jonathan Trott, and retired athletes Iwan Thomas and Dame Kelly Holmes.
As he flipped burgers with the prince, Thomas spoke publicly for the first time about his depression
‘Struggling in silence’
when injuries ended his career. Harry said ‘They almost put more pressure on themselves…if you’re not performing to the right standard, you can end up suffering and that’s OK,’ he said. ‘It’s OK to suffer as long as you talk about it.’ He added that public figures talking about mental health ‘should open the way for everybody else to … we’re all human beings.’
Mind’s Paul Farmer said: ‘To see a member of the Royal Family talk about their own experiences … sends a message to those who might be struggling in silence.’
Nick Harrop of YoungMinds added: ‘It’s fantastic that Prince Harry is saying publicly that we all go through difficult times…that it’s nothing to be ashamed of.’