Prince William and Kate Middleton made their first public outing since the release of Prince Harry’s autobiography Spare. They visited the Open Door Charity to hear how teens are prioritizing their mental well-being in various ways. The Princess of Wales said during the visit that it’s vital to have a “range of therapies” as different ones work for different people. This is after Prince Harry’s book revealed that William made fun of him for his anxiety in the past.
Kate Middleton and Prince William Make First Public Appearance Since Prince Harry’s Book Release pic.twitter.com/soWoKEG2qP
— People (@people) January 12, 2023
Prince William And Kate Middleton First Public Appearance Since Prince Harry’s Memoir Was Released
The Prince and Princess of Wales visited the Open Door Charity on Thursday, Jan. 12 to learn how the organization uses creativity to inspire and engage young people with mental health issues. They met with four teenagers from the charity’s Oomoo program, which offers well-being activities such as music lessons, dance classes, and film nights. After their chat, Kate said of the teens, “That was amazing. They’re so inspiring.”
Prince William and Kate Middleton, Princess of Wales, visited a hospital and a charity in northern England. William twice ignored questions from the media on whether he had read his brother Prince Harry’s tell-all memoir ‘Spare’ https://t.co/DKzEgQkSvF pic.twitter.com/ZgJa2VTZ8c
— Reuters (@Reuters) January 13, 2023
Mental health among the young and old has been a core principle of the Prince and Princess’s public work for many years. It’s also one of the main areas of focus of the couple’s Royal Foundation, which is a charity organization that Prince William and Prince Harry set up in 2009. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle left the Royal Foundation in June 2019. The Royal Foundation’s Heads Together campaign was created with the mission to tackle the stigma of mental health and provide resources for afflicted individuals.
According to the organization’s website, “Our 2017 Heads Together campaign, which convened eight charity partners with one voice, encouraged more people in the UK to talk openly about mental health than ever before, and more people started accessing services as a result.”
Prince William has highlighted the importance of mental health and made combating male suicide a crucial part of his work with the Royal Foundation. Kate is also supportive of mental health initiatives, particularly for children and young people. Despite this supposed support of mental health, Prince Harry accused William of being unsupportive of his own struggles with anxiety in the past.
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Prince Harry’s New Book Revealed Prince William Was “Insensitive” Towards His Panic Attacks
Prince Harry reveals in his new book he struggled with agoraphobia, an anxiety disorder that can cause people to fear places and situations that might cause panic, helplessness, or embarrassment. This can lead to anxiety around open or crowded places, of leaving one’s own home, or of being in places from which are difficult to escape.
Harry writes in his memoir, “I was an agoraphobe. Which was nearly impossible given my public role.” Spare was released on Jan. 10 and included numerous other shocking allegations and confessions from the prince. He recalls “one speech, which couldn’t be avoided or canceled, and during which I’d nearly fainted” and writes that his older brother, Prince William, came backstage afterward laughing at him for being “drenched.”
“Him of all people. He’d been present for my very first panic attack. With Kate. We were driving out to a polo match in Gloucestershire, in their Range Rover. I was in the back and Willy peered at me in the rearview. He saw me sweating, red-faced,” Harry writes. “‘You all right, Harold?’ No, I wasn’t. It was a trip of several hours and every few miles I wanted to ask him to pull over so I could jump out and try to catch my breath.”
