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Wales Online
Wales Online
National
Ted Hennessey & Jonathon Manning

Prince Harry used cannabis to deal with 'traumas and pains of the past'

Prince Harry has spoken about using drugs, such as cannabis, to help him cope with past "traumas". The Duke of Sussex admitted to regular drug-taking in his book, Spare.

In the memoir, he described how in 2015 while living in Nottingham Cottage in the grounds of Kensington Palace, he smoked cannabis. He talked more about his drug use in a live interview on Saturday (March 4) with Dr Gabor Mate, author of The Myth Of Normal: Trauma, Illness & Healing In A Toxic Culture.

Speaking in the interview, Harry said: “(Cocaine) didn’t do anything for me, it was more a social thing and gave me a sense of belonging for sure, I think it probably also made me feel different to the way I was feeling, which was kind of the point. Marijuana is different, that actually really did help me.”

Prince Harry spoke about using drugs to deal with trauma (PA)

The duke also described using psychedelics. This included ayahuasca, a South American psychoactive and entheogenic brewed drink.

It was "the cleaning of the windscreen, cleaning of the windshield, the removal of life’s filters just as much as on Instagram, these layers of filters," he said: “It removed it all for me and brought me a sense of relaxation, release, comfort, a lightness that I managed to hold on to for a period of time.

“I started doing it recreationally and then started to realise how good it was for me. I would say it is one of the fundamental parts of my life that changed me and helped me deal with the traumas and pains of the past.”

Dr Mate told him that after he read Harry's book he diagnosed him with ADD. The term is used for people who have difficulties concentrating without the presence of symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), which include impulsiveness or hyperactivity.

Tickets for the event cost £17, plus a £2.12 fee for UK customers. The price included a copy of Spare, which is the fastest-selling non-fiction book in the UK since records began following its release in January.

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