Prince Harry has revealed that he experienced two weeks of depression shortly after moving to Canada with Meghan Markle and their son Archie in late 2019, months before the couple formally announced their decision to step back as senior working members of the Royal Family.
Speaking during the MasterClass series Redefining Grief: Building Resilience Through Loss, Harry said he suffered an "adrenaline crash" after leaving what he described as a stressful environment in Britain and struggled to function without the pressure he had become accustomed to.
"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," Harry said, according to the BBC's report.
He added that he had struggled to function without the pressure and adrenaline he had become used to.
"I actually slipped into depression for about two weeks, and I felt like I couldn't function without adrenaline," he said.
The Independent also reported Harry's account of the two weeks of depression following his arrival in Canada.
Harry's decision to step back from royal duties
Harry and Meghan moved to Canada with their son, Prince Archie, in 2019. In January 2020, the couple announced they would step back as senior working members of the Royal Family. Their decision became widely known as Megxit.
According to the BBC, Harry said he initially wanted to leave Britain to gain space and time to think.
His comments offer an insight into the emotional challenges he faced during a major change in his life. However, his account of depression relates specifically to his personal experience and should not be taken as a medical assessment of the wider circumstances surrounding the couple's departure.
Prince Harry speaks about grief after Diana's death
During the same discussion, Harry also spoke about the lasting impact of his mother's death. Diana, Princess of Wales, died in a car crash in Paris in August 1997, when Harry was 12 years old.
The BBC reported that Harry described spending years feeling emotionally numb because he believed that being happy without his mother would be disloyal to her.
"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," Harry said, according to the BBC.
He added that he felt he had to remain sad to show how much he missed her.
Harry also reflected on his military service, including his deployments to Afghanistan. He said that he had gone to war in his twenties believing he could escape his feelings.
"In my 20s, I went to war twice thinking I could outrun my feelings," he said, as reported by the BBC.
According to the BBC's account, Harry later began to recognise that his grief remained unresolved.
Therapy helped Harry understand his grief
Harry also discussed how therapy helped him process the loss of his mother. The BBC reported that a therapist suggested he use Diana's perfume to reconnect with memories of her. Harry said the experience helped him recognise that his mother would have wanted him to be happy.
The discussion with Dr O'Connor explored how grief can affect people long after the death of someone close to them.
Harry's latest comments add to his previous public discussions about mental health and bereavement. His account highlights the emotional difficulties he experienced during his childhood and adulthood, as well as his efforts to understand and manage his grief.
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