Prince Harry spoke to The Telegraph's Bryony Gordon for her podcast Mad World where she interviews celebrities about their experiences with mental health.
The link for the podcast is in my bio. Enjoy, share, and remember: you are not alone! https://t.co/FE0ef9HjKc pic.twitter.com/eJaGorUzNr
— Bryony Gordon (@bryony_gordon) April 16, 2017
Charity Work
Prince Harry works with a number of charitable organisations along with his brother Prince William and William's wife Kate Middleton.
Harry served in the British Army for ten years and has continued to work with the Armed Forces by volunteering with the Personnel Recovery Unit in London as well as working with charities as part of his public service in support of The Queen.
He told Bryony that the one constant issue that came up, whether he was working with homelessness or young kids, was mental health. This led to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry to spearhead the Heads Together campaign to end the stigma surrounding mental health.
Mental Health
When asked if he had suffered from mental health issues personally, Prince Harry said that looking at his life events up to now, from the death of his mother to his work in Afghanistan, it would be strange if he hadn't suffered from mental health issues.
"If you look back to the fact that I lost my Mum at the age of twelve on a sort of public platform, of which it was, and then everything else that happens with being in the spotlight, this sort of role and the pressures that come with it.
"And then going to Afghanistan and then [...] working with the personal recovery unit with all of the soldiers as well."
While Harry insists that Afghanistan hasn't left him with any remaining mental health issues, it is the death of his mother that caused him to begin "shutting down" all of his emotions.
Princess Diana
During the interview, Harry told Byrony that his way of dealing with his mother's death was by sticking his head in the sand and "refusing to ever think about my Mum".
"I can safely say, losing my Mum at the age of twelve and therefore shutting down all of my emotions for the last twenty years, has had a quite serious effect on, not only my personal life but my work as well."
Three years ago, Harry's brother and close friends urged him to seek professional help as they insisted that it wasn't normal for him to be so unaffected by his life's events. As it turns out, a few conversations made all the difference.
"All of a sudden, all of this grief that I had never processed had come to the forefront and I was like 'there's actually a lot of stuff here that I need to deal with'."
While Harry admits that he lives an incredibly privileged lifestyle, he says that his work left him in some uncomfortable positions when it came to dealing with his anxiety as he would always have to choose fight over flight while stuck at an engagement or event.
"It was twenty years of not thinking about it and then two years of total chaos".
Moving forward
Since opening up about his own problems, Harry says that friends and family come to him more frequently to discuss both his problems and their own.
"There's nothing better than being able to share your experiences and ask for advice from someone who's actually been through it."
Due to his volunteer commitments, one day of work could result in hours of speaking to people with severe PTSD, depression, and stress along with numerous other physical and mental health issues.
"You sort of park your own issues because of what you're confronted with and all you want to do is help and listen".
The Prince admitted that learning his limits and reaching out to loved ones for help was key to his recovery.
If you suffer from mental health issues contact Mental Health Ireland. Find out more about Heads Together here.
