Prince Harry Says He 'Couldn't Function Without Adrenaline' After Moving to Canada

Prince Harry has revealed that he slipped into depression for about two weeks after moving to Canada with Meghan and their infant son Archie in late 2019, describing an unexpected 'adrenaline crash' that left him feeling unable to function without the stress and adrenaline he had become accustomed to.

The Duke of Sussex made the disclosure in a new MasterClass, Redefining Grief: Building Resilience Through Loss, released on Thursday, 8 October, in which he reflected on grief, mental health and the psychological effects of stepping away from royal life.

The online course, co-taught with grief neuroscientist Dr Mary-Frances O'Connor, marks Harry's latest public foray into mental health advocacy and builds on years of interviews, documentaries and podcasts in which he has discussed therapy, panic attacks and the lasting impact of his mother's death.

The Adrenaline Crash and Two-Week Depressive Episode

Harry said the family moved to Canada to 'get some space away from everything just to be able to think.' Within two or three days, he said, he experienced what he described as an 'adrenaline crash' after leaving what he considered a highly stressful environment in the UK.

'It was as if I needed stress in order to get the adrenaline to make my brain function because I became useless around the house,' Harry said. He added, 'I actually slipped into depression for about two weeks and I felt like I couldn't function without adrenaline.'

The couple spent several months on Vancouver Island after Archie was born in May 2019. They kept their stay private at first, but the media later reported it before they announced in January 2020 that they would step back from senior royal duties and split their time between the UK and North America.

Harry's Account of Stress, Adrenaline and Grief

Harry presented the experience as part of his broader struggle with grief and emotional numbness following the death of his mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, in 1997.

In the same MasterClass, he discussed years of emotional suppression, panic during royal engagements and the role therapy played in helping him process his grief.

He has previously spoken about using military service and work as ways of keeping busy while dealing with grief, and in the new class he again reflects on emotional numbness, panic and the difficulty of processing that loss.

The family later relocated to California in 2020 and subsequently settled in Montecito. Six years on, Archie is seven, and Lilibet is five. The family returned to the UK from California in August 2026 and are living there while remaining private individuals rather than working members of the royal family.

Harry has said it is 'great' to be back on British soil, and his children have begun attending British schools after leaving their previous US school because of security concerns.

Harry's Revelation Offers Insight

The disclosure has prompted online discussion, with reactions ranging from sympathy for Harry's account to scrutiny of the timing, as the Sussexes settle into their new UK base and face renewed attention over their relationship with the wider royal family.

He frames the experience as part of his broader understanding of grief and mental health, themes that also underpin the new MasterClass, filmed earlier this year in California and featuring Harry alongside grief neuroscientist Dr Mary-Frances O'Connor.

Prince Harry says he 'couldn't function without adrenaline' after moving to Canada is not just a quote; it offers a window into how Harry says he responded when the pressure he had become accustomed to suddenly eased.

Whether that insight resonates as a cautionary tale or a relatable confession likely depends on how much of your own life runs on a similar, unsustainable fuel.

What is clear is that Harry continues to frame his personal struggles in public terms to normalise conversations about grief, therapy and the psychological cost of life under intense scrutiny. In doing so, he risks both praise for candour and criticism for oversharing, but the central message remains consistent: stepping away from the structures that once defined him has forced a reckoning with emotions he long suppressed, and that reckoning, he says, is still underway.