Harry says he 'slipped into depression' during royal exit

Prince Harry wears a black suit, white shirt and black tie as he walks through a white doorway.

Image source, ReutersImage caption,

The Duke of Sussex moved to Canada temporarily with his wife, the Duchess of Sussex, in 2019

ByAleks Phillips

Published4 minutes ago

The Duke of Sussex has said he "slipped into depression for about two weeks" after relocating to Canada in 2019 ahead of his move to the US.

Prince Harry, who with his wife Meghan and their two children recently returned to the UK, said he had originally left the country to "get some space" while opening up about his mental health.

The duke also discussed a prolonged period of feeling "emotionally numb" following the death of his mother Diana, Princess of Wales, because he felt "disloyal and guilty for the possibility of being happy and joyful without her".

He and his brother, the Prince of Wales, have previously been candid about their mental health struggles, including over their mother's death, and both are involved in mental health charities.

Prince Harry, who later stepped back from royal duties to move to California with Meghan, spoke about his emotional upheavals as part of a paid-for online masterclass on dealing with grief.

"Being in Canada, away from the stressful environment where presumably my body was just pumped full of adrenaline, within two or three days, I experienced this adrenaline crash, something that I'd never experienced before," he recalled.

"It was as if I needed stress in order to get the adrenaline to make my brain function because I became useless around the house.

"I actually slipped into depression for about two weeks and I felt like I couldn't function without adrenaline."

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The couple unexpectedly announced last month that they were returning to the UK with Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five, after spending six years in the US. They are now thought to be living in the Cotswolds.

In the video, Prince Harry also revealed that he had a rule that he would never be away from his family for more than 10 days.

He talked about struggling to process his grief in the years after the death of his mother when he was 12.

"In my 20s, I went to war twice thinking I could outrun my feelings," the duke said, referring to his stints in Afghanistan as a member of the Army. "But that's not what happened.

"I'd spent so long emotionally numb, to a large extent, because I felt disloyal and guilty for the possibility of being happy and joyful without her.

"I felt like I had to be sad and I had to be emotionally numb in order to prove to her that I missed her."

File photo dated 06/09/97 of Prince Charles (now King Charles III), Earl Spencer, Prince Harry and Prince William walk slowly behind the funeral cortege of Diana, the Princess of Wales at her funeral at Westminster Abbey. All four bow their heads and wear dark suits, with bouquets of flowers visible on railings behind.

Image source, PA MediaImage caption,

Prince Harry said he struggled to process his grief for years after the death of his mother Diana, Princess of Wales

Prince Harry said that after crying at Diana's funeral, he did not cry for nearly two decades, multiple news outlets reported.

He said it was a therapist who suggested he spray her perfume to "unlock everything", adding that this allowed him to discover that "she just wanted me to be happy".

Mary-Frances O'Connor, a neuroscientist and University of Arizona professor who also featured in the online class, explained: "Your brain doesn't register your loved one as gone - it registers them as lost.

"And it will keep searching until you teach it otherwise. We still expect that they're going to walk through the door."

MasterClass approached Harry about appearing in the programme last year and it was filmed in California over the summer, according to People magazine.