“The key message,” said Britain’s Prince Harry, who is fifth in line to the throne, “is that everyone can suffer from mental health issues, whether you’re a member of the royal family, whether you’re a soldier, whether you’re a sports star.”
The prince, 31, was speaking in regard to his mother, Prince Diana, who died tragically in a car crash in 1997 — which the media covered extensively for many months — when the prince was only 12 and his older brother, Prince William, was 15. Diana reportedly suffered from borderline personality disorder.
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Prince Harry said he had not discussed his mother’s passing until three years ago, according to the BBC and as Reuters also reported.
“I really regret not talking about it,” he also said. “For the first 28 years of my life, I never talked about it.”
He added, “It is OK to suffer, but as long as you talk about it, it is not a weakness.”
He added, “Weakness is having a problem and not recognizing it and not solving that problem.”
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The prince, a former British army soldier who served in Afghanistan, spoke last week at a barbecue that he hosted for Heads Together, a mental health charity. The event was attended by such sports stars as former England footballer Rio Ferdinand and Olympic athlete Kelly Holmes.
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