James Middleton
He finds peace in nature
James Middleton speaks openly about his depression.
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James Middleton reflects 1,255 days after being diagnosed with depression on why the outdoors is important to his mental health.
James Middleton (34), the younger brother of Duchess Kate (39), has in a long Instagram post spoke again openly about his depression. “It has been exactly 1,255 days since I was diagnosed with depression – that day was the first day I learned about mental health and how it affects our lives,” he writes at the beginning. Ten days after the diagnosis, he disappeared, packed his dogs in his car and drove to a wild and remote part of the Lake District. “There I swam in an icy lake, took lonely walks on snow-capped mountains and stayed alone in a secluded house to calm the turmoil in my head,” explains Middleton in the post, in which he took two selfies of himself and his dogs published in the snow.
On his trip he climbed a mountain with his dogs. “I screamed loudly (like in films), cried and absorbed everything nature could give me to give me the strength to tackle the fight against depression,” reveals the 34-year-old. Today, nature is of central importance for his mental and emotional health. “One of my best strategies to manage my own mental health today is to take my dogs for a walk to breathe in the power of nature.” Beekeeping also helps him. “When I’m with my bees, it’s like someone pressed the mute button on anything that worries me.”
In 2019, James Middleton first went public with his depression in a guest post for the British “Daily Mail”. Making his story public at all is what inspired Duchess Kate and Prince William (38), who work with the charity organization “Heads Together” for the society’s acceptance of mental health problems.
Help with depression is offered by telephone counseling on the free number: 0800/111 0 111