Prince Harry admits to severe emotional suffering over Diana's death

Britain's Prince Harry suffered "total chaos" before eventually seeking help to deal with the death of his mother Princess Diana, he said in an interview published Monday.

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Prince Harry suffered 'total chaos' over Diana's death

London, April 17, 2017, AFP – Britain's Prince Harry suffered "total chaos" before eventually seeking help to deal with the death of his mother Princess Diana, he said in an interview published Monday.

Speaking to The Telegraph newspaper, the 32-year-old prince said he had spent years trying to ignore his emotions following Diana's death in 1997 when he was just 12.

"My way of dealing with it was sticking my head in the sand, refusing to ever think about my mum, because why would that help? It's only going to make you sad. It's not going to bring her back," he said.

It was not until the age of 28 that he sought help from mental health professionals after encouragement from others, including "huge support" from his older brother Prince William.

"It was 20 years of not thinking about it and then two years of total chaos... I didn't know what was wrong with me," he said.

His candid words were widely praised by commentators.

The mental health charity Mind described the interview as a "turning point" and campaign group Time to Change said he "will have helped change attitudes".

"It's inspiring to see Prince Harry speaking out about his experience. It shows how far we have come in changing public attitudes to mental health that someone so high-profile can open up," said Paul Farmer, chief executive of Mind.

Diana and her boyfriend Dodi Fayed were killed in a car crash in a Paris underpass on August 31, 1997, along with their French driver Henri Paul as they tried to outrun chasing photographers.

Her death triggered a mass outpouring of public grief and Harry walked behind her coffin during a funeral which was broadcast around the world.

This file photo taken on September 06, 1997 shows Britain's Prince William (L) and Prince Harry (R), the sons of Diana, Princess of Wales, bowing their heads as their mother's coffin is taken out of Westminster Abbey following her funeral service. Speaking to The Telegraph newspaper, the 32-year-old prince said he had spent years trying to ignore his emotions following Diana's death in 1997 when he was just 12. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / Adam BUTLER

Harry said he recently confronted the grief of losing his mother as well as tackling the pressures of a royal life including overcoming a feeling of "fight or flight" during engagements.

"I generally don't know how we (royals) stay sane. I don't have any secrets, I've probably been very close to a complete breakdown on numerous occasions," he said.

Describing himself as "a problem" through much of his twenties, Harry said as well as seeking treatment he found taking up boxing helped.

"Everyone was saying boxing's good for you and it's really good for letting out aggression. That really saved me, because I was on the verge of punching someone. Being able to punch someone with pads was certainly easier," he said.

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