Prince Harry has lamented the lack of “support” he received while struggling with his mental health, before he sought out therapy.
The Duke of Sussex is currently appearing in the five-part Netflix series Heart Of Invictus, which was released on Wednesday, as part of the multi-million pound deal he and his wife Meghan Markle have with the streaming platform.
Harry’s latest project is a documentary about the Invictus Games, the sporting event for injured and wounded veterans and serving members of the military, which he founded in 2014.
In the documentary, Harry speaks candidly about the mental health struggles he faced when his own tour of Afghanistan came to an end, and the feelings this triggered within him.
“Somewhere after that, there was an unravelling,” he explains.
While Harry says the “trigger” was returning home from Afghanistan, he says he began experiencing trauma related to the death of his mother, Princess Diana, 15 years earlier.
“The trigger to me was actually returning from Afghanistan, but stuff that was coming up was from 1997, from the age of 12,” Harry recalls. “Losing my mum at such a young age, the trauma that I had, I was never really aware of. It was never discussed.
“I didn’t really talk about it and I suppressed it like most youngsters would have done, but then when it all came fizzing out, I was bouncing off the walls. I was like ‘what is going on here? I’m now feeling everything as opposed to being numb’.”
He continues: “The biggest struggle for me was [that] no-one around me really could help. I didn’t have that support structure, that network or that expert advice to identify what was actually going on with me.
“Unfortunately, like most of us, the first time you really consider therapy is when you’re lying on the floor in the fetal position, probably wishing that you’d dealt with some of the stuff previously, and that’s what I really want to change.”
Harry has previously spoken in depth about the struggles he has experienced with his mental health due to past trauma in his 2023 memoir Spare.
He and his wife also spoke about their shared difficulties in the three-part Netflix documentary Harry & Meghan, as well as their 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey.
Reflecting on her time as a senior member of the Royal Family, the Duchess of Sussex disclosed that she experienced suicidal thoughts during that period.
Meghan shared: “I went to the institution and I said that I needed to go somewhere to get help ... And I was told that I couldn’t, that it wouldn’t be good for the institution.”
All five episodes of Heart Of Invictus are now streaming on Netflix.
Help and support:
- Mind, open Monday to Friday, 9am-6pm on 0300 123 3393.
- Samaritans offers a listening service which is open 24 hours a day, on 116 123 (UK and ROI - this number is FREE to call and will not appear on your phone bill).
- CALM (the Campaign Against Living Miserably) offer a helpline open 5pm-midnight, 365 days a year, on 0800 58 58 58, and a webchat service.
- The Mix is a free support service for people under 25. Call 0808 808 4994 or email help@themix.org.uk
- Rethink Mental Illness offers practical help through its advice line which can be reached on 0808 801 0525 (Monday to Friday 10am-4pm). More info can be found on rethink.org.