Princess Beatrice breaks down in tears as she opens up on emotional health struggles

Edinburgh Live

08-05-2025

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Princess Beatrice has opened up about her health struggles and the crucial role her mother Sarah Ferguson played in helping her be proud, rather than afraid, of her health battles.
Beatrice, 36, was speaking alongside her sister Princess Eugenie on the 'Lessons From Our Mothers' podcast hosted by Cressida Bonas and Isabella Branson when she mentioned a health condition she has battled for over 20 years.
She told the hosts that she has had scoliosis, an abnormal curvature of the spine, since she was just 12-years-old. The condition was so acute that she had to have an operation.
It was during the process of hospitalisation and the aftermath of that experience that Beatrice revealed just how crucial a role her mother Sarah had played in her ability to thrive following the diagnosis.
She said: 'I had scoliosis when I was younger. I have scoliosis and I had a big operation when I was 12. Which my mum basically moved into the hospital with me and was there every waking hour. If I was ever in pain, she was right by my bedside.
'I'm sure lots of mums listening to this will have the same experience if their child's ever gone through something. As a 12-year-old little girl I had a big scar halfway down my back and I was terrified of it, I was ashamed. I didn't know what it was I was so young.
'And she used to be so proud of me and my scar and what I'd been through, that if people were ever talking about it she would turn me around and she would show them my scar.'
Sarah's impact was so profound that when it came to Beatrice's wedding to Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi in July 2020, she decided to show off her scar to the world.
She explained: 'It led to me feeling so confident that on my wedding day, I wore a dress that showed my scar to the world because I was like 'This is the coolest thing ever' because my mum had retrained my brain by her behaviour.'
This isn't the first time Beatrice has spoken out about her personal activities in recent months. Earlier this week, she issued an apology after missing an event in London.
She had been due to attend a ceremony hosted by the Oscar's Book Prize, but was unable to make it due to personal reasons, reports the Daily Express.
Princess Beatrice has been a patron of the charity since March 2017 and has written about her difficulties with dyslexia.
Opening up about her experience of being neurodivergent in the Evening Standard in 2017, she said: "I could not understand why I was still reading behind my classmates. It was at this point that stories became one of the key things which inspired me.
'I was lucky my mother, with her great imagination, took the time to work on these with me. By the time I read Harry Potter, aged 11, I tore through the pages.'