Harry was in New York City for World Mental Health Day (Image: Brigid Brown)
Prince Harry took part in World Mental Health Day on Friday, kicking off a four-person panel, and I was impressed.
One key thing I noticed was that when Harry took to the stage, he spoke to the audience, not at them, making the point that mental health is about community, in which he considers himself a part of, not removed and not above.
Harry’s intro was short and succinct, covering a lot of territory, moving from serious topic to serious topic, in a seamless manner without missing a beat, which was not only moving but impactful, showing his natural empathy.
Harry started off by humbly thanking everyone for coming out and was fully transparent, suggesting an ‘in this together’ mindset, with the talk revolving around surviving or thriving in the digital age.
He made a poignant remark, setting the tone for the day, saying: “These are not separate problems for separate people, they are interlocking injuries to our global community.”
“I was blown away by Harry’s ability to bring people together”
After his portion of the talk, Harry joined his wife Meghan Markle as members of the audience (Image: Getty Images )
He eased people into the day by explaining what to expect: “Over the next several hours you will hear from remarkable people, researchers, advocates, parents, young people and leaders reshaping how we approach our mental health, here in American and around the world.”
From there, he backtracked to address what’s been happening in the world, going back to the start of the pandemic and the residual effects: “The past five years have taught us, painfully, that crises rarely arrive in isolation, the global pandemic stripped away the ordinary scaffolding of life and brought an immeasurable surge of anxiety, depression and loss of connection.”
Harry went beyond the individual experience and how mental health can impact entire nations.
He explained: “War and displacement, from Ukraine to Gaza, Sudan to DRC/DLC, and many places in between, have created waves of trauma, for those defending their countries and way of life, as civilians, families, are forced to flee.”
He went one step further, addressing how Mother Nature can play havoc on a person or entire community’s mental state. “Climate disasters have translated into eco-anxiety and psychological upheaval as extreme weather uproots communities and destabilizes lives.”
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Harry gave a little talk and then took a step back, the sign of a leader
We are living in a digital age, and for some people, they know what life was like before the internet, and for young people, this is all they know, and it can be a dangerous place for both.
Harry addressed the downside of technology: “Our digital world has fundamentally changed how we experience reality, young people exposed to relentless and parasitic harassment, misinformation and an attention economy designed to keep us scrolling at the expense of sleep and real human contact.”
And while the digital age comes with its problems, there are issues that go beyond the internet, which Harry did include in his talk.
Harry said: “And, of course, economic instability, from cost of living shocks to inflation has produced constant, corrosive stress for hundreds of millions.”
Harry went above and beyond in making the point that people aren’t alone in this, that these are shared problems, and possibly, shared fixes.
He said: “These are not separate problems for separate people, they are interlocking injuries to our global community.”
He concluded: “Mental health is shaped by public health, climate policy, corporate design and economic choices, too often decisions made by a few powerful actors ripple across the planet into every aspect of our lives.”
Harry and Meghan were just honored with a Humanitarians of the Year Award by Project Healthy Minds, and the Sussexes’ nonprofit Archewell helped produce three talks at Project Healthy Minds’ World Mental Health Day Festival on Friday, which focused on the importance of maintaining mental health.
if you would like to learn more about the organization and what other events they have coming up, you can head over to Project Healthy Minds’ official website.