Prince William says having children brought back emotions felt after Princess Diana’s death
The Duke of Cambridge has spoken about how the “life-changing” experience of becoming a father brought back emotions he felt following the death of his mother, Princess Diana.
On Thursday 28 May, the documentary Football, Prince William And Our Mental Health will air on BBC One.
In the documentary, which was created over the course of a year, Prince William was filmed meeting football players, managers and fans in an effort to spark conversations about mental health in the sport.
At one point during filming, the 37-year-old spoke with former professional player Marvin Sordell, and discussed the “overwhelming” nature of parenthood.
Sordell told the duke that becoming a father for the first time a few years ago was “the hardest time in my life”, saying he found it hard to be a role model to his child having grown up without a father. “I really struggled with my emotions at that time,” the 29-year-old said.
When asked by Sordell who he went to for support when he became a father, Prince William said: “Having children is the biggest life-changing moment, it really is.”
“And I agree with you, I think when you’ve been through something traumatic in life – and that is like you say your dad not being around, my mother dying when I was younger – your emotions come back in leaps and bounds because it’s a very different phase of life,” the duke stated.
“And there’s no one there to, kind of, help you, and I definitely found it very, at times, overwhelming.”
Prince William said that he and Duchess of Cambridge “support each other”, and that they “go through those moments together” and “kind of evolve and learn together”.
“But I do agree with you,” he told Sordell. “I think emotionally things come out of the blue that you don’t ever expect or maybe you think you’ve dealt with and so I can completely relate to what you’re saying about children coming along, it’s one of the most amazing moments of life but it’s also one of the scariest.”
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have three children: six-year-old Prince George, five-year-old Princess Charlotte and two-year-old Prince Louis.
Prince William’s mother, Princess Diana, died in 1997 in a car crash.
William was 15 at the time while his brother Harry was 12.
Last year, Prince Harry described the memories surrounding his mother’s death as “a wound that festers”.
“I think being part of this family, in this role, in this job, every single time I see a camera, every single time I hear a click, every single time I see a flash, it takes me straight back, so in that respect it’s the worst reminder of her life, as opposed to the best,” he said.
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