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 "We went out to a lot of people and nobody, before we started, was
interested in being a part of 'Heads Together' – because it was
mental health," he said, speaking on a panel at the World Economic
Forum in the Swiss resort of Davos.
William, who is second in line to the British throne, also opened up
about his experiences of dealing with trauma during his daily work
in the air ambulance, which he retired from two years ago.
Remembering a particularly affecting incident, he said: “I know if I
hadn’t taken the action I did then, I would have definitely gone
down a slippery slope and I would have been dealing with mental
illness on a different level."
His fellow panelist, New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern,
praised the prince for speaking out about mental health issues.
Ardern, at 38 the world’s youngest female head of government, has
said she will introduce New Zealand's first ‘well-being budget’ to
gauge how policy impacts the quality of people’s lives.
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"I think unfortunately one of the sad facts for New Zealand is that
everyone knows someone who has taken their own life. We're a small
country, less than 5 million people, but last year more than 600
people committed suicide," she said.
"I’ve lost friends and I wouldn't have to look far in my cabinet to
find others who have as well," Ardern added.
William, who has previously warned British men of the dangers of
keeping a traditional "stiff upper lip" at times of stress, said he
thought his country’s difficulties with expressing emotions came
from a wartime generation who passed on a tendency not to talk about
problems.
Asked what he thought leaders should do to tackle mental health
issues, William told the Davos crowd: "I think more leaders need to
talk about it."
(Editing by Gareth Jones)
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