Meghan Markle hasn’t “scraped the surface” of the trauma she experienced leading her to consider ending her own life as a working member of the royal family, she has revealed in a new interview, suggesting future revelations may be yet to come.
Speaking to CBS Sunday Morning anchor Jane Pauley, the duchess appeared taken aback when asked about her own experience with suicidal thoughts in an interview which aired on August 4 about her new project with Prince Harry, “The Archewell Foundation Parent’s Network.”
The network has been set up to support parents whose children may fall victim to the harmful effects of social media.
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A collective of parents whose children were pushed to end their own lives over social media abuse have launched a new campaign in collaboration with the Parent’s Network titled “No Child Lost to Social Media,” in which they have shared their heartbreaking stories.
Discussing the newly-founded network, Pauley suggested to Meghan that people have connected with her on the issue of suicide because she has been open with her own experience.
The duchess revealed in her 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey that tabloid and social media abuse after her introduction as a working royal in Britain led her to consider ending her own life while pregnant in 2019.
“The connection that you have with people is that they know that you have suffered too, personally contemplating killing yourself,” Pauley told Meghan, before noting that the duchess appeared noticeably “uncomfortable” with the interviewer “going there.”
“I understand why you are though,” the duchess responded. “I wasn’t expecting it but I understand why you are. Because there is a through line I think and 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.”
Then, Meghan told Pauley that she hasn’t yet discussed the full-depth of the experience which she raised in the Winfrey interview.
“You know, I haven’t really scraped the surface on my experience,” she said.
“But I do think that I would never want someone else to feel that way. And I would never want someone else to be making those sort of plans. And I would never want someone else to not be believed.
“If me voicing what I have overcome will save someone, or encourage someone in their life to really genuinely check in on them and not assume that the appearance is good, so everything’s okay, then that’s worth it. I’ll take a hit for that.”
Newsweek approached representatives of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle via email for comment.
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The comment hints that if Meghan believes she can help others through discussing the mental health trauma she faced in 2019 which pushed her to consider taking desperate action, she could become more candid with the public—something which is likely to cause concern within the monarchy.
Meghan made the bombshell revelation that she had considered suicide in her conversation with Winfrey which aired in March 2021.
Reflecting on a period where she was receiving negative press in Britain and regular social media abuse in January 2019 while pregnant with her son, Prince Archie, the duchess told Winfrey she broke down and told her husband that she didn’t want to be alive anymore.
“I was really ashamed to say it at the time and ashamed to have to admit it to Harry, especially, because I know how much loss he’s suffered. But I knew that if I didn’t say it, that I would do it,” she said.
Unsure of how to help his wife, Harry encouraged her to attend a pre-planned engagement on the night in question which was a Cirque du Soleil performance in London. Photographs of the couple smiling at the event have been highlighted as an example where they presented a public mask to hide personal pain.
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In the Winfrey interview, Meghan also revealed that she reached out to palace “human resources” to ask for mental health help but that they turned her away because she was not a “paid employee.”
After the interview was broadcast, a wave of backlash was directed at the monarchy. Though, to Meghan’s surprise, the main focus was not her mental health revelation but instead her disclosure that prior to the birth of Prince Archie, an unnamed royal family member had made comments about the color of his skin.
“We didn’t see it until the world saw it,” she said of the interview in the 2022 Netflix show, Harry & Meghan.
“I thought that me being very open about the depression I experienced and just how extreme that became, I thought that would be the biggest take away.”
Since Harry and Meghan split from the monarchy in 2020, they have faced repeated criticism from certain commentators and social media users when they have discussed the issues they faced within the institution and with royal family members.
Meghan, however, has hinted that she has more to say of her experiences of that time, with her comment to Pauley about not having “scraped the surface” being just the latest example of this.
In a 2022 interview with The Cut magazine, the duchess revealed that she kept a diary of the time in the monarchy and stated that she never signed an non-disclosure agreement with the royals.
“I’ve never had to sign anything that restricts me from talking. I can talk about my whole experience and make a choice not to,” she said, adding that she was “still healing.”
In 2023, the duke and duchess’ staff let it be known that they had moved away from “look back” projects and were focusing on the future following the release of the Netflix show and Harry’s memoir. However, it may now be through the lens of helping others connected with their charity work that the couple disclose more about their past experiences moving forward.
If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please contact the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988, text “988” to the Crisis Text Line at 741741 or go to 988lifeline.org.
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek‘s royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X (formerly Twitter) at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek‘s The Royals Facebook page.
Do you have a question about King Charles III and Queen Camilla, William and Kate, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We’d love to hear from you.