Kate Opened Up About How Hard It Can Be Raising Kids
The Duchess of Cambridge, a mom of three, knows firsthand about the struggles parents can face.
While she does have Maria Turrion Borallo, the trusty nanny, to help with Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, she expressed her solidarity and empathy with other parents during a visit to the charity Family Action.
“It’s so hard. You get a lot of support with the baby as a mother particularly in the early days, but after the age of 1 it falls away,” she said during her visit.
“After that there isn’t a huge amount — lots of books to read. Everybody experiences the same struggle,” she added.
She was there to launch a new U.K. support line for the charity that uses a volunteers from across the country to support parents and caregivers virtually through telephone calls, email and text messaging.
Deidre, from Islington, north London, and her aunt, Dawn Daley, told the Duchess how Family Action had helped them while they struggled to look after Deidre’s children who have a genetic disorder called neurofibromatosis.
“When she came in it felt like just another friend,” Dawn says. “She was really nice, she was easy to talk to and interacted with us all. And she listened. And when we got emotional she was a bit . . . you know!
“She was saying we were brave to be able to speak about our stories and come out and speak about what’s happening with us. She was very compassionate. I was scared – should I curtsy, should I say Ma’am. But from the time she walked in there was this presence and everyone just felt at ease.”
“She’s a mom and it wasn’t easy for her, as well, so it was really good [her coming],” she adds. “That royal thing went out the window once she sat down.”
Kate also listened to some stories of a group of young carers, who look after family members. Alysha, 16, says, “She was really friendly, open and kind and made me feel really comfortable. She was asking a lot of questions.”