Prince Harry opens up about ‘broken home’ and ‘trauma of losing Diana’
Prince Harry has said he always ‘felt different from the rest of his family’ and opened up about his upbringing in a ‘broken home’ in his latest interview.
The Duke of Sussex sat down with ‘trauma expert’ Dr Gabor Maté for a 90-minute conversation last night.
In the chat Harry also spoke about the pain he continues to suffer because of losing his mother at just 12-years-old.
He also said he was a good candidate for the army because ‘they recruit from broken homes’.
In the £17-per-ticket livestream event that included a free copy of his memoir, Spare, Harry discussed his drug use and his views on the war on Afghanistan.
He said he always felt different from the rest of his family and that his mother – Princess Diana – felt the same.
Describing his struggles to find his ‘authentic true self’ while growing up, he said: ‘I felt slightly different to the rest of my family. I felt strange being in this container, and I know that my mum felt the same so it makes sense to me.’
The royal – who Dr Maté publicly diagnosed with attention deficit disorder (ADD) – said he constantly hugged his children, Archie and Lilibet, to ‘shower them with affection’ – something he doesn’t believe he received from his father, King Charles.
He also spoke of the importance of parents not arguing in front of children, saying: ‘Do not have those disagreements, arguments, whatever it is… luckily my wife and I don’t have those.
‘The idea of having those in front of the kids? I assume that my parents probably had a lot of those [rows] in front of me, maybe that’s where it comes from… that’s not a good idea.’
Dr Maté recounted a scene from Spare when Harry described how Charles told him the news of his mother’s death without giving him a hug.
Describing how he was seeking to adopt a different approach, the duke said: ‘It leaves me in the position of a father having two children trying to smother them with love.
‘I feel a huge responsibility not to pass on any trauma or negative experiences that I’ve had as a kid or as a man growing up.
‘There are times when I catch myself when I should be smothering them with that love but I might not be.’
He added that if he did not hug his own children, it would have a ‘similar’ impact on them as to what he experienced growing up.
He also reflected further on family life when he spoke about his suitability for joining the army, and said: ‘I was also a fantastic candidate for the military.
‘You know, I don’t know how it is around the rest of the world but certainly in the UK we we tend to recruit from broken homes.’
Dr Maté agreed, adding the military is also good for those who ‘need structure’.
The physician has over 20 years experience dealing with people suffering from mental illnesses including addiction. He is well-known for his beliefs surrounding childhood trauma.
Elsewhere during the Q&A, The Duke of Sussex discussed his drug use and said marijuana had ‘really helped’ him mentally.
Speaking about cocaine, Prince Harry told Dr Dr Gabor Maté: ‘I don’t think that did anything for me.
‘It was more of a social thing, and I guess trying to get a sense of belonging, for sure.’
He added: ‘I think it also probably made me feel different to the way that I was feeling, which was kind of the point.
‘Marijuana is different, that actually did help me.’
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