William breaks his silence over Di's bulimia battle
When Princess Diana publicly spoke about her bulimia battle in 1995, it exposed her innermost vulnerability – but also revealed a determined courage in speaking out against the "secret disease" she had battled against for years.
Her son Prince William has now spoken about his mother’s confessions for the first time, revealing his pride at her attempts to normalise the conversation surrounding eating disorders.
RELATED: Harry and Wills on the moment Charles told them Diana had died
RELATED: Inside Diana's personal photo album
Appearing in new documentary Wasting Away: The Truth About Anorexia, Prince William discusses Diana’s bulimia battle with British TV presenter Mark Austin, whose own daughter Maddy suffered from anorexia.
“We need to normalise the conversation about mental health. The fact that you are speaking out is incredibly brave,” Prince William tells Mark and Maddy in the documentary.
The prince was just 13-years-old when his mum spoke out about her battle against bulimia, revealing it was an “escape mechanism” to cope with her life in the spotlight, and a symptom of her troubled marriage to Prince Charles.
“I had bulimia for a number of years. And that's like a secret disease,” she candidly confessed.
“You have to know that when you have bulimia you're very ashamed of yourself and you hate yourself… so you don't discuss it with people.”
For Prince William, his mum’s honesty is a source of inspiration as he continues her work in bringing awareness of the need to speak openly about mental health.
"Absolutely," Wills says in the documentary when he's asked if he's proud of his mum. "These are illnesses. Mental health needs to be taken as seriously as physical health."
Want more celebrity, entertainment and lifestyle news? Follow Be on Facebook,Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram.