Prince Harry recalls two-week depression after move to Canada

Prince Harry said he experienced about two weeks of depression after leaving Britain and temporarily moving to Canada in 2019, describing a sharp drop in the adrenaline that had accompanied years of pressure. He also spoke about the grief he continued to suppress after the death of his mother, Princess Diana.

The recollections came during a paid online course focused on coping with grief. Harry and his wife, Meghan, stepped back from royal duties, moved first to Canada and later relocated to California in the United States. He said their initial decision to leave Britain was intended to give them “some space.”

A sudden drop in adrenaline after moving to Canada

Harry recalled that, after leaving an environment that had kept him under constant tension, he felt what he described as an adrenaline crash within two or three days. He said he had never experienced the feeling before and became unable to do much at home.

He said he seemed to need pressure and stimulation to keep his mind functioning. “I was actually depressed for about two weeks, thinking, ‘I can’t perform without adrenaline,’” Harry said.

He did not say whether he received treatment at the time or explain in detail how the episode affected his daily life. He discussed the experience while speaking with a neuroscientist as part of the course, which is available for a fee on the MasterClass platform. The production team invited Harry to take part last year, and the video was filmed in California during the summer.

Grief, guilt and Princess Diana’s death

Harry also discussed the long-term effect of his mother’s death. Diana died in 1997, when Harry was 12. He said that, in his 20s, he served in Afghanistan on two occasions and initially believed that doing so might help him escape his feelings. Ultimately, he said, it did not.

Harry said he remained emotionally numb for years because he felt that being happy would amount to disloyalty to his mother. He also felt guilty, believing he needed to stay sad and suppress his emotions to prove that he missed her.

He said that after crying at his mother’s funeral, he did not cry again for almost 20 years. A therapist later suggested that he spray the perfume Diana had used during her life to help him reconnect with his emotions. Harry said the experience led him to understand that his mother would want him to be happy.

Return to Britain and family life

Harry and Meghan recently returned to Britain with their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. The couple announced the trip last month. They have lived in the United States for six years and are understood to be based in the Cotswolds.

During the course, Harry also mentioned a personal rule that he should not be away from his family for more than 10 days.

Harry and his brother, Prince William, have both spoken publicly about mental health, including the effects of their mother’s death, and have taken part in related charitable work. Harry’s latest comments focused on the short-term psychological changes he experienced after moving abroad and on the way grief continued to shape his emotions and everyday life decades later.