HRH Prince William and Lady Gaga might not be the most likely of charity co-campaigners. But the duo have joined forces as part of #oktosay, a film series launched by mental health campaign and royal initiative, Heads Together, that encourages open discussion about mental health.
FaceTiming William from her kitchen, Gaga congratulated the prince on his charitable efforts and opened up about her past struggles with mental health (she recently shared that she suffers from PTSD via an open letter on her blog), and talked about why it’s so important that young people no longer suffer in silence. “There’s a lot of shame attached to mental illness,” Gaga says. “You feel like something’s wrong with you… in my life you go look at all these beautiful and wonderful things that I have and I should be so happy. But you can’t help it if that in the morning you wake up, you are so tired, you are so sad, you are so full of anxiety and the shakes that you can barely think.”
Praising Gaga for her candidness, William highlights the importance of standing up and speaking out about issues relating to mental health. “It’s time that everyone speaks up and really feels normal about mental health,” he says. “It’s the same as physical health. Everybody has mental health. We shouldn’t be ashamed of it.”
Thanks to Prince William & @heads_together for inviting me to join this important conversation around mental health awareness #oktosay pic.twitter.com/w4RYmw7Llj — xoxo, Joanne (@ladygaga) April 18, 2017
Find more information about Heads Together on its website. If feel like you might be suffering from mental health issues, charities like Mind can offer support and advice. For urgent help, find their helplines and services listed on their website.
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Text Tish Weinstock