Prince Harry diagnosed with ADD and talks playing the victim on livestream with therapist

Prince Harry had a meeting with therapist Dr. Gabor Maté to discuss his mental health and victimhood in a livestream that was broadcast online.

This session, which took place March 4, was for the purpose of the Duke of Sussex promoting his book, ‘Spare’, a controversial deep-dive into the royal family from the prince’s perspective. The book was released in January, and just 24 hours later Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, were served an eviction notice from their second home, the mansion called Frogmore Cottage.

A livestream ADD diagnosis

During the session, Dr. Maté diagnosed Prince Harry with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, a psychological condition where the person struggles to focus on one thing for any length of time.

“Whether you like it or not, I have diagnosed you with ADD,” the doctor told the prince in the livestream therapy session. “You can agree or disagree. I don’t see it as a disease. I see it as a normal response to abnormal stress.”

Playing the victim

The therapist noted that the prince has received many accusations that he is playing the victim.

“I certainly don’t see myself as a victim,” the Duke of Sussex said. “I’m really grateful to be able to share my story in the hope that it will help, empower, encourage others. … And hopefully, let people understand that again, back to this human experience that we all in some shape or form, [are] all connected, especially through trauma.”

“For me, the experiences that I’ve had throughout my childhood, throughout my life, throughout my 38 years, albeit relatively short — I’m not looking forward to becoming 40, that’s for sure,” Prince Harry, whose older brother, William, is 40-years-old, continued.

A hero rather than a victim?

Prince Harry maintained throughout the interview that he aired the royal family’s dirty laundry in his memoir to help others who might be suffering from mental illness.

“But through those experiences and through the work that I have done for two decades now around mental health and mental illness, I’ve always felt as though sharing whatever I can of my story will help someone or some people out there,” he said.

“There are people who have shared things of my life, outside my control, be it true or false. But to be able to share the things of my life that I think are important, for other people, it does, it feels good,” Prince Harry continued.

“But to me, it feels like an act of service,” he said, emphasizing that he hopes readers will be encouraged to try therapy.”