PRINCE William broke down in tears while speaking to a brave mum whose husband took his own life just five days after the death of their son.
The royal got emotional while paying a visit to Rhian Mannings, where she opened up about her husband’s death while the pair spoke about suicide prevention.
After being warmly greeted by Rhian with her mother’s welsh cakes, William sat down to discuss the stigma around suicide.
The pair began by catching up following their first meeting in 2017.
As the conversation moved on to Rhian’s late husband Paul’s tragic death, the royal quickly became teary-eyed.
Responding to William’s question of what she would say to Paul if she could turn back the clock, Rhian said: “There is only one thing I would ever say to him if I had time with him and that would be ‘why didn’t you speak to me?’
“He’s missed out on just so much joy and we would have been ok.”
Her heartbreaking response prompted the Prince of Wales to break down in tears.
He then proceeded to apologise to Rhian, to which she replied: “No it’s fine, it’s hard and you have experienced loss yourself.”
He then took a deep breath and regained his composure to continue the conversation.
As their discussion continued, William said: “The best way to prevent suicide is to talk about it.
“Talk about it early. Talk about it with your loved ones – those you trust, your friends.”
He then concluded: “So thank you for talking about it.”
Rhian responded by extending the same thanks, saying: “Well thank you for talking about it too.”
After their conversation, William met Rhian and Paul’s two other children, Hollie and Isaac.
He gave Rhian an affectionate hug before the pair parted ways.
The mother tragically lost her husband and one-year-old son within just five days of each other in 2012.
In a new film made in honour of World Mental Health Day, Rhian opens up about her family’s devastating loss.
She recounts the day that her son, George, suddenly fell ill and was rushed to hospital, where he tragically died but hours later.
Rhian went on to say that just five days later “the unimaginable happened.”
Paul walked out the door and never came home after choosing to take his own life.
In an attempt to describe her experience, Rhian said: “It’s really difficult to explain how grief feels – emptiness, physical pain, your heart hurts.”
“When you loose somebody to suicide it leaves so many questions unanswered.”
In a call to action, she continued: “Lets stand together, lets talk about it.
“We can help each other, this really doesn’t have to be what happens.”
YOU'RE NOT ALONE
EVERY 90 minutes in the UK a life is lost to suicide
It doesn’t discriminate, touching the lives of people in every corner of society – from the homeless and unemployed to builders and doctors, reality stars and footballers.
It’s the biggest killer of people under the age of 35, more deadly than cancer and car crashes.
And men are three times more likely to take their own life than women.
Yet it’s rarely spoken of, a taboo that threatens to continue its deadly rampage unless we all stop and take notice, now.
That is why The Sun launched the You’re Not Alone campaign.
The aim is that by sharing practical advice, raising awareness and breaking down the barriers people face when talking about their mental health, we can all do our bit to help save lives.
Let’s all vow to ask for help when we need it, and listen out for others… You’re Not Alone.
If you, or anyone you know, needs help dealing with mental health problems, the following organisations provide support:
- CALM, www.thecalmzone.net, 0800 585 858
- Heads Together,www.headstogether.org.uk
- HUMEN www.wearehumen.org
- Mind, www.mind.org.uk, 0300 123 3393
- Papyrus, www.papyrus-uk.org, 0800 068 41 41
- Samaritans,www.samaritans.org, 116 123
Rhian reflected on her grief journey in her conversation with the royal.
She confessed: “I will forever go over those last few days with him wondering what I missed.”
“This just shows that it really can happen to anyone.”
In the wake of the two devastating deaths, Rhian has campaigned for more support for bereaved families.
In 2022, she helped to introduce a plan with the Welsh Government which ensured that anyone affected by the sudden death of a child or young person would receive the support they need.
She told the BBC that after her son’s death she felt her family didn’t receive enough bereavement support.
She said: “I truly believe if there would have been something in place back then that Paul would have been here today.”
Rhian is also the founder of the charity 2wish.
The organisation aims to support not just families, but anyone impacted by the death.
Rhian’s tireless work resulted in her being awarded an MBE.
She told the BBC: “To see people putting one foot in front of the other and knowing they’re not alone is amazing, because grief can cause such feelings of loneliness and isolation.”
In the UK, someone dies by suicide every 90 minutes.
The Royal Foundation is using charities across the four home nations to transform suicide prevention in the UK through a new National Suicide Prevention Network.
For more support visit www.hubofhope.co.uk
What to do to help someone feeling suicidal: expert tips from the Samaritans
- If someone is talking about suicide, always take it seriously.
- You don’t have to be able to solve their problems but if you feel you can, offer support and encourage them to talk about how they’re feeling. Ask direct questions and don’t be afraid of frank discussions. Many people do want a chance to talk but don’t want to burden anyone around them.
- Supporting someone in distress can be distressing in itself. If you’re helping someone who feels suicidal, make sure you take care of yourself as well. If you need to talk about how you are feeling, please feel free to call Samaritans whenever you need.
- If you can, first try to encourage them to contact us directly, as this will put them in more control of when and how they talk to us.
- When we contact them, we can tell the person that you asked us to get in touch, or keep you anonymous if you prefer.
- We won’t tell you anything the person you’re worried about shares with us, or whether they wanted our support. The only information we can share with you is whether or not we managed to reach them.
- You can ask us to contact whoever you’re worried about by phone, email or letter and we’ll contact them in the way you suggest with the details you provide.
- If we call and somebody else picks up, we won’t leave a message.
- Contact the Samaritans: Whatever you’re going through, call free any time, from any phone on 116 123.