Prince William shows his class with touching gesture towards PTSD sufferer | Royal | News
Prince William showed his class as he met a PTSD sufferer who was overcome with emotion as he discussed the crucial support he has received from a mental health charity supporting rural communities. The touching moment came during the future king’s visit to Anmer Social Club, where the Norfolk and Waveney Mind rural outreach project is being run on a two-year pilot, funded by William, Princess Catherine and Mind.
The royal stopped by the club, located near the royal family’s home at Anmer Hall, to learn about the progress of the new service. Nearly 800 people have been seen since the pilot started, and early feedback suggests the choice of venue for group sessions has been particularly effective. The NHS website revealed that William met Paul Gannon, a local businessman, who said he was struggling with PTSD, which stands for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and is caused by very stressful, frightening or upsetting events.
Mr Gannon broke down in tears as he thanked the “wonderful” staff, encouraged the prince to put his hand on his arm, gently told him to “take his time” and gave him time to compose himself.
Explaining the origins of the project, the prince said: “I noticed there was a lot of isolation going on, people were stopping me and talking to me about it and it was like ‘well, can you do something about it?’ I felt like there was a bit of a nod to say.
“And this is sort of a pilot project to understand what the need is, what the challenges are in the rural community and how we can replicate something like this across the UK so we don’t leave a gap in how we look after people.”
Mr Gannon, who has been supported by Mind for nearly four years, told the heir to the throne: “In my experience Mind has become a kind of family. I’m very lonely here, my family is elsewhere and yes, they’ve been very helpful.”
“I had PTSD issues that really started to bother me, and it’s nice to be able to (talk to) not just antidepressants and things like that, but actually real people, caring people, people you trust.”
William asked Mark Back, who runs Mind’s local men’s group, what encourages men to seek help and he replied: “I wish I knew the answer.
“When we get a guy in the door and he sees us and the way we interact, they tend to come back, there is good progress and relationships are formed.”
He added that the younger generation’s willingness to talk about their psychological health has an impact on older relatives.
William also chatted to a group supported by Norfolk and Waveney Mind who attend exercise sessions for menopausal women.
