Meghan Markle was reminded why she fell in love with Prince Harry as she sweetly praised her “inspiring” husband for the moving speech he gave about mental health in Nigeria.
This week, both the Duke and Duchess of Sussex gave heartwarming welcome addresses at the inaugural mental health summit put on by the GEANCO Foundation at the Lightway Academy in Abuja during the first stop of their Nigeria tour. This marks the first stop on the couple’s trip following Prince Harry’s solo journey to the UK, during which his father King Charles refused to meet with him. Despite the recent snub, Prince Harry moved forward with giving a passionate speech urging the importance of mental health awareness.
After the touching speech, Meghan was beaming and filled with admiration for her husband as she said to the crowd: “You see why I’m married to him?” And lovingly added: “He’s so smart. And so inspiring because he speaks the truth.”
Prince Harry delivered an inspiring speech about mental health in Nigeria
In Meghan’s speech she gushed over how honoured she was to visit the country of Nigeria and spoke about mental health awareness and the importance of expressing your emotions from a young age. The mother of two said: “As I look around this room, I see myself in all of you as well. So it is a complete honour to have our first visit to Nigeria, be here with all of you.”
She continued: “We believe in all of you, we believe in your futures, we believe in your ability to continue telling your stories and to just be honest with each other. There is no need to suffer in silence. Just make sure that you’re taking care of yourselves.”
In Prince Harry’s earlier speech he also spoke on mental health as he told the crowd of young students: “In some places around the world, more than you would believe, there is a stigma against mental health. Too many people don’t want to talk about it because it’s invisible, it’s in your mind and we can’t see it.”
He continued that mental health is “still something we are relatively unsure of” and added: “But guess what, every single person in this room, the youngest, the oldest, every single person has mental health. So therefore, you have to look after yourself in order to be able to help other people, other people have to look after themselves in order to be able to look after you. That’s the way it works.”
The father of two went on to urge that it is normal and healthy for people to have “bad days” filled with stress or grief or sadness and that anyone can suffer from mental health issues “on any given day.” He concluded: “If you take anything away from today, just know that mental health affects every single person.”
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were greeted by student dancers at the summit (
Image:
Getty Images for The Archewell F)
The jam-packed summit began with street-style dancing from the students of the school and was followed by the power couple being greeted and introduced by the school’s director Joyce Agbese. During the outing Meghan was wearing a flattering peach-coloured dress while Prince Harry stepped out in a tight light grey button-down shirt as they both sported matching traditional African necklaces. This summit marks just one of the many stops the pair have ahead of them as it has been announced that they have a busy schedule coming including sporting events and trips to military hospitals and charities in Abuja and Lagos.
When the 39-year-old Duke of Sussex arrived in the UK to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Invictus Games, it was widely assumed that he would take the opportunity to pay a visit to his 75-year-old dad, who was diagnosed with cancer earlier this year. However, it was announced on Tuesday that a reunion between the duo was not on the cards, with the King apparently being too busy with “other priorities” to see his son.
According to a source close to the King, he is still reeling from the barrage of explosive claims Harry and Meghan have made about the Royal Family over the last couple of years. Speaking to the Daily Mail, they explained: “He doesn’t need the drama in his life,” adding: “Harry and Meghan have brought him, and the rest of the family, nothing but worries over the past few years.”
According to another insider, King Charles’ cancer diagnosis has made him realise that “his time might be very limited.” With a new determination to make a real difference as quickly as possible, the King is reluctant to get wrapped up in the drama that his son and daughter-in-law bring with them. The source revealed: “Frankly speaking, Harry and Meghan are a painful distraction that he could do without.”
