William, Prince of Wales has spoken about not having the “tools or experience” to cope with a massive life change during a discussion about mental health.
William, Prince of Wales has spoken about not having the ‘tools or experience’ to cope with a massive life change during a discussion about mental health
His wife Catherine, Princess of Wales, also took part in the talk on BBC Radio 1, with royal watchers saying Prince William’s remark appeared to be a reference to the death of his mother Princess Diana when he was aged 15.
The couple, both 40, headed a debate for World Mental Health Day, which fell on Monday (10.10.22), with the recording for BBC’s Newsbeat due to air on Tuesday (11.10.22) on Radio 1, Radio 1Xtra and the Asian Network at 12.45pm.
William said in a preview clip: “A lot of the work we’ve done on mental health and listening to lots of people talk about it, everyone likes a toolbox – particularly men.
“A toolbox is quite a useful analogy to kind of use. A lot of people don’t realise what they need until it actually comes along.
“You can be living one life one minute and something massively changes and you realise you don’t necessarily have the tools or the experience to be able to tackle that.”
Dr Abigail Miranda, an educational and child psychologist, responded: “To have, I suppose, in your toolbox, communication would be key and I suppose some of the myth-busting as well around attachment.
“We know now through studies that actually any parent who spends a significant amount of time – or any caregiver – with the child will also form similar attachments and have those similar patterns as well.”
Catherine said she would “love” to know how contributors to the discussion nurtured their mental health, with Antonio Ferreira – a wellness activist who was diagnosed with undifferentiated schizophrenia and emotionally unstable personality disorder as a teenager, replying: “That’s a big question. I know not every day is going to be roses and sunflowers, you know, I know some days I’m going to have to push against the clouds to see that sun again and, you know, I know that you know when you have a bad day it doesn’t mean it will be a bad week or a bad month.”
Mum-of-three Catherine added: “There’s no right or wrong, that’s the thing as well. Different things will work for different people and it’s just sometimes trying isn’t it, as well? Different methods, different opportunities that arise as well to help best support you.”
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