Watch Princess Kate Open Up About Mental Health — and Why Talking About It 'Can Feel Difficult'

Princess Kate is getting in front of the camera to help break the stigma surrounding mental health in children

Princess Kate is getting in front of the camera to help break the stigma surrounding mental health in children.

The royal mom, who announced she is pregnant with her third child earlier this month, filmed the introduction to an animated video that helps schoolchildren face the difficulties of mental health challenges.

“Mental health is how we feel and think. Things that can’t really be seen, but that affect us every day and talking about them can feel difficult,” Kate, 35, says in the video, which she recorded when she bonded with other young moms during a visit with one of her favorite charities, Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families, in January.

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The animation “helps us all talk about our mental health,” she says. “What to say and who to talk to when we have feelings that are too big to manage on our own. And how to listen and help if one of our friends is finding things difficult. Sometimes, it’s just a simple conversation that can make things better.”

Mental wellbeing is at the center of Kate’s public work alongside husband Prince William and brother-in-law Prince Harry, and next month will see all three royals targeting further action around World Mental Health Day.

The animated film, which debuts just as Prince George, 4, completed his first week of school in London — is accompanied by free teaching materials circulated to all elementary schools, which have been designed to help children learn the lifelong skills to help them talk about “big” and “small” feelings, and how to listen to their friends when they need to talk, the charity says.

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In a statement, Kate says, “As parents, we all want our children to have the best possible start in life. Encouraging children to understand and be open about their feelings can give them the skills to cope with the ups and downs that life will throw at them as they grow up.”

She adds, “It’s important that our children understand that emotions are normal, and that they have the confidence to ask for help if they are struggling.

“The campaign’s resources are excellent tools to support parents. They demonstrate how we can help children express their feelings, respond appropriately, and prevent small problems from snowballing into bigger ones.”