Prince Harry credits Duchess Meghan for showing him the possibility of a different life.
The Duke of Sussex hosted a livestream event this afternoon to promote his best-selling memoir Spare, taking part in an intimate conversation with Dr. Gabor Maté, author of The Myth of Normal: Trauma, Illness, and Healing in a Toxic Culture. During the talk, the prince opened up about how Meghan changed his life, saying that she "saved him" from himself at a time where he felt "stuck" in his royal life.
"My wife saved me. I was stuck in this world, and she was from a different world and helped draw me out of that," he said. "But none of the elements of my life now would have been possible without me seeing it for myself."
"My partner is an exceptional human being and I'm eternally grateful for the wisdom and the space that she has been able to give me," he continued.
Later in the conversation, which took place with the prince and the expert on trauma and childhood development seated across from each other before a crackling fireplace, Harry also said that he had a "crash course" in racism since meeting Meghan.
"I think what people perhaps don't understand is the pain that it causes to an individual is huge, but then the pain that it causes to society is immense," he said.
Today's event comes two months after Spare's record-breaking release, as well as Harry's extensive press tour, where he spoke on his journey of healing from his mother Princess Diana's death and his decision to step back as a senior member of the Royal Family. In the memoir, the royal wrote on seeking therapy after a specific moment with Meghan early in their relationship.
In the passage, Harry writes about a time he overreacted to something Meghan said and, as a defense mechanism, lashed out at her.
"Meg said something I took the wrong way. It was partly a cultural difference, partly a language barrier, but I was also just over-sensitive that night. I thought: Why's she having a go at me?" the book reads. "I snapped at her, spoke to her harshly—cruelly. As the words left my mouth, I could feel everything in the room come to a stop."
He shares that Meghan left the room they were in, and after 15 minutes, he found her in the bedroom.
"She was calm, but said in a quiet, level tone that she would never stand for being spoken to like that," he writes, adding that the event led to him seeking therapy.
Quinci LeGardye is an LA-based freelance writer who covers culture, politics, and mental health through a Black feminist lens. When she isn’t writing or checking Twitter, she’s probably watching the latest K-drama or giving a concert performance in her car.
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