Prime Minister Theresa May and MPs have commended Prince Harry’s open interview, in which he talks about his own mental health, struggling to cope with the grief of losing his mother in his 20s.
Prince Harry has been praised for his openness about mental health by Theresa May and MPs. Picture by Stephen Lock / i-Images
Mrs May called Harry’s decision to open up a “really important moment” for Britain.
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Downing Street told ITV that the Prime Minister backed the Prince’s decision to speak so openly about his mental health struggles after he suffered the loss of his mother.
Harry, 32, admitted to Bryony Gordon that he bottled up his grief and avoided thinking about his mother after her death. This caused him a period of ‘total chaos’ at the age of 28, when he said he was on the verge of a breakdown; he eventually sought professional help with the encouragement of his brother, William, and others close to him.
Prince William, Catherine and Harry set up the Heads Together charity, bringing together mental health organisations in the UK to ‘change the conversation’ on mental health for the better.
MPs have since followed suit, revealing their own experiences: Chuka Umunna, John Woodcock and John Nicholson were touched by the interview, opening up about losing family members.
Mr Umunna wrote: “Big big respect to Prince Harry for opening up about his mental health and grief. Losing a parent so young is v.tough. I lost my Dad at 13 -doing so in the public eye wld have been harder still”.
Mr Woodcock felt similarly, and wrote of his experiences: “Prince Harry opening up about the way he processed his grief will help a lot of people. My chaos and madness after losing my sister kicked in straight away. Grateful people stuck with me. Well done Harry for talking about this.”
John Nicholson said: “Good for Prince Harry. Having lost my dad as a young teenager I can relate to what he says about locking away grief. #mentalhealth“.
Matt Warman MP said: “My parents died when I was 28 – Prince Harry has done a huge service to all of us who struggled to deal with loss.”
2 comments
To be courageous is selfish but to be brave is selfless
Prince Harry is an inspiration to so many people! I am glad for him speaking up on the struggles he went through after his mother’s death. I used to often think about him and his brother,Prince William how they were coping after they lost their mother. I am so very proud of Prince Harry and I am glad he seeked help! I am also glad for him that he has found love and is in a ‘good place’ in his life!!! All best to this lovely young Prince!!!