Prince Harry says he was depressed for about two weeks after he and Meghan moved to Canada. His explanation isn’t regret. He describes an “adrenaline crash”: once the pressure of royal life was gone, his body seemed to stop coping. He said this in a video posted online on 8 October 2026 for a mental health learning platform, and ABC News reported it the next day, pointing to an earlier BBC report.
- Harry says he was depressed for about two weeks after moving to Canada.
- He blames an “adrenaline crash” after leaving a high-stress environment, not regret.
- The same video covered the emotional numbness he felt after Diana’s death in 1997.
- He has spoken about his mental health publicly before, in 2017 and 2021.
- The remarks come as his family settles back in Britain and presses for police protection.
What He Actually Said
ABC quotes Harry saying he “slipped into depression for about two weeks” in 2019. What stands out is how physical his account is. Within two or three days of arriving in Canada, he says, he hit a crash he’d never felt before. It was as if his brain needed stress to work at all, and at home he felt useless.
The timeline needs one caution. The reports place this in 2019, after the move. But the couple’s step back from royal duties was announced in January 2020, and ABC says they became private citizens that year. Outlets may describe the same stretch of time slightly differently, so check dates before you quote anyone.
Also Read: Buckingham Palace Uncovered: Fascinating Facts Every Visitor Should Know
Grief Sat Underneath All of it
The Canada episode wasn’t the heart of the video. Harry spent more of it on his mother. Diana died in 1997 when he was 12, and he described years of feeling emotionally numb afterwards. He said he couldn’t recall her laugh or her face, and that he felt he had to stay sad to prove he missed her. He also said he went to war twice in his twenties believing he could outrun those feelings. He served ten years in the British Armed Forces, with two deployments to Afghanistan.
He has told versions of this story before. In a 2017 Daily Telegraph interview with Bryony Gordon, he said he’d shut down his emotions for almost two decades and went through two years of “total chaos” before getting counselling in his late twenties. In 2021 he took part in the Apple TV+ series The Me You Can’t See, made with Oprah Winfrey. So the new remarks add a chapter more than they reveal a secret.
Why People Are Paying Attention Now
The timing is part of the story. According to ABC, Harry, Meghan and their children, Archie (seven) and Lilibet (five), moved back to Britain from California in August 2026, six years after stepping away from royal duties. In September, his spokesperson said European paparazzi had been watching the children at their new school.
Security remains the sore point. The couple have paid for their own protection since becoming private citizens, and they want the government to give them automatic police protection, as other senior royals get. Harry has long blamed press intrusion for his mother’s death and has compared Meghan’s treatment to Diana’s. Read against that, his latest comments are about more than one bad fortnight.
Also Read: Is Queen Camilla’s Absence Linked to the King’s Decision Not to Move Into Buckingham Palace?
What To Take From it
Plenty of people will recognise the pattern. When a long period of high stress ends, even by choice, the body and mind don’t always settle straight away. Sometimes they fall apart first. That’s one man’s account of his own experience, not a medical finding, and it shouldn’t be read as a general rule. If any of this sounds familiar, a doctor or mental health professional is a good place to start, and I can help you find support where you live.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long did the depression last?
About two weeks, according to ABC News and CTV News.
Where was he living?
Canada, after he and Meghan moved there.
What does he blame it on?
An adrenaline crash after leaving a high-pressure environment.
Where did he say this?
In a video posted online on 8 October 2026 for a mental health learning platform, as reported by ABC.
Has he talked about this before?
Yes. He spoke about his mental health in a 2017 Telegraph interview and in the 2021 series The Me You Can’t See.
Sources & References
- ABC News, “Prince Harry speaks of mental health struggles after Diana’s death and split from royal family”
- CTV News, “Prince Harry says he was depressed for two weeks after moving to Canada”
- BBC News, report on Prince Harry’s remarks (cited by ABC News)
- The Daily Beast, “Prince Harry Came ‘Very Close to a Complete Breakdown’ Several Times”
