Prince William has shared the challenges and happiness of parenting after the loss of his mother, Princess Diana, when he was 15 years old.
William and his wife, Catherine, are parents to Prince George, 6, Princess Charlotte, 5, and Prince Louis, 2. Princess Diana died in a car crash in Paris in 1997.
In an upcoming BBC One documentary, “Football, Prince William and Our Mental Health,” William spoke with former soccer player Marvin Sordell and revealed the difficulties of raising children while missing a parental figure.
“Having children is the biggest life-changing moment. It really is,” William said. “When you’ve been through something traumatic in life, that is, your dad not being around, my mother dying when I was younger, your emotions come back in leaps and bounds because it’s a very different phase of life, and there’s no one there to kind of help you.”
He also explained that not having his mom has made parenting feel “at times, overwhelming.” He added, “Me and Catherine, we support each other, and we go through those moments together, and we evolve and learn together.”
William then emphasized how grief can resurface unexpectedly, even after believing it has been processed. “Emotionally, things come out of the blue that you don’t ever expect or that maybe you think you’ve dealt with,” the father of three explained. “Children coming along… is one of the most amazing moments of life, but it’s also one of the scariest.”
When Sordell told him that the late Princess Diana would be proud of her oldest son, William responded, “I appreciate that.”