MEGHAN Markle has told fans she was bullied by social media trolls every day for ten years.
Speaking to university students while on a faux-royal tour of Australia the Duchess of Sussex opened up about her personal experiences.
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Meghan opened up on her experiences, branding herself as ‘the most trolled person in the world’Credit: AP
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Both Harry and Meghan have previously campaigned to raise awareness about the harms of social mediaCredit: AP
Meghan’s comments came on day three of her and Harry’s tour of the country.
Meghan, 44, and Harry, 41, appeared at Melbourne’s Swinburne University of Technology to discuss mental health with the young students.
The Duchess told fans to be “strong” in the face of social media bullying as she discussed the impacts of the platforms on young people.
Offering her own experiences to the gathered fans, Meghan said: “And I can speak to that really personally, which is why I like to listen, because it rings true for me in a very real way.
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“For now, 10 years, every day for 10 years, I have been bullied and attacked.
“And I was the most trolled person in the entire world.”
She went on to add: “I’m still here.”
Husband Harry also spoke about his mental health during the Sussexes’ tour of Australia.
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He told how he had felt “lost, betrayed, or completely powerless” during his life in a keynote speech at a summit on leadership in the workplace.
Harry made the remarks at the InterEdge Summit in Melbourne on “leadership, psychosocial safety and human connection in the workplace”, with the Duchess of Sussex watching in the audience.
He said: “There have been many times when I’ve felt overwhelmed.
“Times when I’ve felt lost, betrayed, or completely powerless.
“Times when the pressure – externally and internally – felt constant.
“And times when, despite everything going on, I still had to show up pretending everything was ok, so as not to let anyone down.
“For many years I was numb to it, and perhaps that was easier then, but I also didn’t yet have the tools to deal with it.”
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Harry also spoke openly about his mental health as he delivered the keynote speech at the InterEdge Summit in MelbourneCredit: AP
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Meghan claimed she had endured ’10 years of bullying’Credit: AP
Later at the summit, the Duke of Sussex explained that he had “never wanted to be a working royal”, saying it had killed his mum – Princess Diana.
He told how after his mum passed away, he said to himself: “I don’t want this job. I don’t want this role – wherever this is headed, I don’t like it.”
And, while speaking to students at the university alongside Meghan, Harry branded Australia’s ban on under-16s using major social media sites “epic.”
He would go on to tell the gathered university students that social media “led to so much loneliness for so many people.”
Both the Duke and Duchess have campaigned to raise awareness of the harms of social media.
The couple’s appearance at the university marked their last day in Melbourne before they jet off to Sydney.
They last visited Oz in 2018 while still working royals, announcing Meghan’s first pregnancy hours after arriving in Sydney.
The couple stepped down as working members of the British royal family and moved to the U.S. in 2020, citing a desire to be financially independent.
Since they stepped down, Harry and Meghan have made “faux-royal” tours of Colombia and Nigeria, and they appeared together at the Invictus Games in the Netherlands, Germany and Canada.
Insiders say the trip to Oz — where the King is head of state and royal news makes headlines — will be a dummy run and testing ground for a potential joint tour of the UK.
Meghan has not set foot in Britain since she attended the late Queen’s funeral nearly four years ago.
Meanwhile, Harry has said he will not return with his family until they get 24-hour taxpayer-funded armed security.
The Sussexes are waiting for the outcome of a security review which could see the Met Police forced to provide armed guards.
If the couple succeed, Meghan could return this summer with Harry for a 12-month countdown to the Invictus Games — or attend the tournament itself in Birmingham in July next year.
