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In her latest TV interview with Prince Harry, Meghan Markle talked about how she hadn’t ‘really scraped the surface’ of her suicidal thoughts after revealing them in her bombshell Oprah Winfrey interview – and one expert believes this was a very telling remark
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Meghan Markle opens up on suicidal thoughts in CBS interview
Meghan Markle’s candid remarks about her past ‘trauma’ showed her bombshell Oprah Winfrey chat was not enough for her to heal, according to an expert.
In a new interview on US TV, Meghan opened up again about the suicidal thoughts she experienced while she was a working member of the Royal Family. It came as they spoke to CBS Sunday Morning’s Jane Pauley about a new initiative supporting parents of children affected by online harm.
It was the couple’s first joint interview in more than three years since their tell-all Oprah chat in March 2021. In that interview, Meghan admitted she had contemplated taking her own life, saying: “I just didn’t want to be alive any more.” In the latest chat, she said she “hasn’t really scratched the surface” of talking about her harrowing ordeal.
She explained: “I think when you’ve been through any level of pain or trauma, I believe part of our healing journey, certainly part of mine, is being able to be really open about it. And I haven’t really scraped the surface on my experience but I do think that I would never want someone else to feel that way.”
And for royal expert and historian Dr Tessa Dunlop, this was a telling remark. She told the Mirror: “As the British summer erupted into angry protest, across the pond the New Model Royals sat coolly in Santa Barbara, legs crossed, eyes forwards, the epitome of togetherness.
“Cue Harry and Meghan doing what royals do best, promoting their latest initiative: a Parent Network for a new sort of horror, children who lose their lives because of insidious forces on the internet. Drawing from the New Model Royals’ own playbook on pain, CBS anchor Jane Pauley forced the couple to take standard philanthropy that bit further and link their pain to those they are helping. Didn’t Meghan once consider suicide?
“The Duchess confessed she was not expecting the question, Pauley noted it was uncomfortable for Meghan, who reached to touch Harry in just the way Pauley anticipated. Meghan was forced to admit there was a ‘through-line’ between her experience and those families who have lost a child to suicide.
“She talked of the need to be ‘really open about it’ before Meghan admitted she ‘hadn’t really scraped the surface’ of her own pain. Wow. There it was, out in the open once more. The extremity of Meghan’s dark thoughts when working as a British princess.
“Breakdown what Meghan said and her healing journey (one she believes is so important), remains incomplete. Clearly a session on Oprah was insufficient when it came to being ‘really open’ about her suicidal plight inside the Royal Family.”
Tessa added that during the new interview, the Sussexes were careful not to revisit old scores when it came to the Royal Family – but the Firm were “the elephant in the room”. And she explained: “Despite all their well-intentioned good works and conciliatory talk in other fields, the chasm between the Sussexes and the British Royals remains as great as ever.
“Until there is genuine open contact between the House of Windsor and the Sussexes, Harry and Meghan’s pain thesis will continue to wound, undermining credibility on both sides. As the Duchess explained on Sunday, if her sharing helps others ‘then that’s worth it. I’ll take a hit for that’.
“In the style of their trip to Nigeria, soon Harry and Meghan will take off for Colombia, all in the name of service. And rather than being a service that compliments the philanthropic brand the British royal family established, it will be in opposition to it.
“If only both parties could remember they are stronger together. That doesn’t mean a reunited Harry and Meghan inside the royal fold, but public reconciliation and communication. Important symbolic words and actions which might just help our febrile nation to follow suit.”
If you’re struggling and need to talk, the Samaritans operate a free helpline open 24/7 on 116 123. Alternatively, you can email [email protected] or visit their site to find your local branch.
