“The best way to prevent suicide is to talk about”, said the future King of England.
Today (10th October) marks World Mental Health Day, an event created by the World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH) in 1992. For the last 33 years, members of the WFMH have called on people to take part in more discussions surrounding mental illness, with an aim to break down stigmas and advocate for better treatment options.
And Prince William is doing exactly that. This morning a new video was published which saw the future King of England sit down with Rhian Mannings, a 47-year -old woman who lost her husband, Paul, to suicide in 2012, just five days after the death of their one-year-old son, George.
The video can be viewed within this article, or on YouTube.
During the discussion, William asks Rhian what she would say to her husband, if he was with her now. She replied: ‘There’s only one thing I would ever say to him if I had the time with him, and that would be “why didn’t you speak to me?” I think…I ask myself that every single day.’
Filmed in Rhian’s home in Cardiff, Wales, the video also sees the pair talk about the taboos that still exist around suicide. William said: “Unfortunately, there’s still a lot of stigma around suicide. Did you feel that at the time?”
Rhian replied: “I was quite surprised by it, I’d never been touched by suicide, it was something that happened in the news. Nobody would talk about it or actually say what happened. And I found that really confusing at the time.’
The publication of the video comes alongside the launch of the Royal Foundation’s Suicide Prevention Network – a £1m project that has received backing from 20 organisations, including Hub of Hope and James’ Place.
As such, charity 2Wish has also pledged support for the new campaign. The charity was set up by Rhian shortly after she experienced the tragic deaths of her husband and son, with an aim to provide support for for others who have lost loved ones.
More information about how you can be involved in this year’s World Mental Health Day, can be accessed here.
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