I’ve finally found the time to watch Meghan and Harry’s interview with Oprah.
A few sentences caught my attention, and the whole narrative itself reminds me so much of the stories I hear in my work with migrated/relocate couples. And obviously from my own private story.
I’ve been working with couples and individuals who live outside their homelands for some years now, and I find so much in common in their life story.
Meghan said “Life is about storytelling“ and boy, do they have a story to tell….
It seems that this royal couple went through what many of my clients did:
They felt they had to get away and create a geographical distance from their families in order to be able to release themselves from its constrains, move forward and grow. The freedom and free choice to choose one’s destiny is sometimes crucial for the emotional survival. But it’s never easy. It encompasses a lot of loss and grief, a lot of pain and a lifetime of homelessness and struggle with a lack of belonging. Homeland is no more home, there’s no going back, and in the new country we’re always foreigners.
“It takes so much courage to admit you need help” Meghan said in the interview when she spoke of not wanting to live anymore. She asked for help and then told her husband how she felt. “If i didn’t say it i would do it“. That’s such a powerful statement. Just talking to someone about how low you feel really helps. And it doesn’t have to be a professional like me, it can be a close family member or a friend.
Meghan and Harry experienced existential crisis, they speak of the loss of identity, isolation and freedom. Existential issues indeed. I hope they got an existential therapist !
They were resilient enough to be able to support each other through this and find strength and peace in the new home. They definitely got their voices back.
“Life is worth living“ is what they say now. And obviously it’s always work and continues to be.
