After almost two weeks at the London Clinic following her abdominal surgery. Kensington Palace has announced that Kate Middleton finally will return to Windsor to continue her recovery.
The royals are just like anyone else and have to deal with health issues like the best of us. However, as this was quite special, the media interest has been significant, and rumors have been many.
While Kate has decided not to share all the details regarding her medical status, the public has wanted more insights and information about her. That has left one royal expert quite frustrated – comparing it to bullying. Sadly, that has happened to Kate Middleton before.
Kate Middleton has spent almost two weeks at the London Clinic after what Kensington Palace stated was a “planned” abdominal surgery. On Wednesday, nearly two weeks ago, the Palace released the statement just an hour before news came out that King Charles was set to undergo treatment for an enlarged prostate. Today, 13 days after the surgery, she can finally go home.
According to the Telegraph, Kate wasn’t rushed to the hospital. However, aides were still planning for her trips and future engagements as recently as the end of last week. Meanwhile, later on, issues arose surrounding Kate’s choice to not share the news with anyone other than close family.
Kate Middleton hid her planned surgery from family friends
As per People Magazine, the news of Kate Middleton’s hospitalization was a complete surprise for those working closely with the royals, relatives, and friends within William and Kate’s broader circle. The Princess of Wales hid that something was up.
After Christmas, Prince William and Kate caught up with friends at their Anmer Hall home in Norfolk before having a private birthday celebration on January 9.
Within their broader circle of friends, when they were at Anmer Hall, no indication showed that anything was wrong with Kate.
“The carefully guarded news about Kate’s situation came as a surprise even to those who work closely with the royal family,” People reported.
Prince William is said to have visited his beloved wife every morning at the hospital, which has been heavily guarded by police.
But what is The London Clinic, and how is it to stay there? The private hospital in central London, just one hour’s car ride from Windsor, has had many famous guests. It was opened by the then Duke and Duchess of York in 1932 and has become a hospital many celebrities have visited.
John F. Kennedy, then a US Congressman, was diagnosed with Addison’s disease at the clinic in 1947. In 1963, Hollywood star Elizabeth Taylor underwent a knee operation at The London Clinic after falling while filming a movie.
Kate Middleton treated at the London Clinic
Moreover, in 1998, the former dictator of Chile, Augusto Pinochet, was arrested for crimes against humanity while at the clinic.
The royal family has been in contact with The London Clinic in several ways. Starting in the 1980s, royal family members have been officially launching several of the hospital’s facilities. In 1989, then-Prince Charles opened its physiotherapy department, and two years later Princess Margret opened the MRI unit. In 2010, Queen Elizabeth II visited The London Clinic to open its new cancer unit.
As reported by the Daily Mail, the private hospital has a leading cancer center where patients undergo chemotherapy and radiotherapy.
Kate Middleton isn’t the only royal family member who has been a patient there. In 1980, Princess Margaret was treated at the London Clinic to have a benign skin lesion removed, and in 2013, Prince Philip went through what was described as an “abdominal investigation.”
So, what can one expect as a patient at The London Clinic? Well, you will likely have quite the stay.
The large, private rooms include an electronic patient-controlled bed, a private bathroom, a large TV, and a deposit box. The food is arranged by head chef Paul O’Brien, who makes a variety of dishes for the patients.
Patients get their own concierge service
Patients get their own concierge service, while the hospital’s chef serves fish from Cornish boats and meat from Smithfields Market, The Economic Times report.
Moreover, a concierge can help patients arrange travel and accommodation while also booking tours, theatre shows, and restaurants.
A former patient at The London Clinic Rooms has spoken to People about what it’s like. The person said the private hospital has “three or four different menus” to satisfy various dietary preferences and requirements.
“I had a really good experience. I think the experience is always dominated by how well your surgery goes and the best surgeons are associated with The London Clinic, who are leading in their field in both research and surgery. I had a super surgeon, it was all very efficient; I was on the operating table two hours after I went in,” the insider told People.
“The level of service was excellent,” the former patient continued.
“The food is good. It’s à la carte so if you want to make changes, they are pretty good. I was on a strict diet at the beginning, but when I had visitors, they were easily able to order whatever they wanted from the normal menu.”
Even though the princess has been surrounded by some of the best doctors at the London Clinic, that doesn’t mean they can “heal” her body any quicker.
Kate urged not to “rush back” to work
She will rest for nearly a month before Easter arrives, and yet, while she reportedly has done some work from her hospital bed, doing too much too early can be a severe health risk. As the Princess of Wales is known to be very active, it will probably be challenging for her.
According to Dr Max Pemberton, a full-time psychiatrist with the NHS, returning to work too soon can be devastating. Speaking to the Daily Mail, Pemberton says that Kate must “not rush back” after her surgery and issues a warning.
“The Palace has said she’ll be taking time off official duties until Easter and on this, I think she’s incredibly sensible. We don’t know what’s wrong or why she needed the operation, but Kate has always struck me as quite down-to-earth, level-headed and stoical, so I’m sure she wouldn’t have heeded medical advice and taken that much time off unless really necessary,” he said.
“Abdominal surgery is serious. Of course, there’s always someone who will tell you how they had a hysterectomy in their lunch break, or their appendix removed while on the school run. But in reality we should all be taking a leaf out of Kate’s book and convalescing properly.”
Dr. Max Pemberton continued describing that we, in this somewhat stressful world, all must fully recover physically and mentally before returning to any kind of work. Just like Princess Kate, Pemberton explains that he, too, has had abdominal surgery.
“Looking back, wish I’d appreciated how major my operation was and taken the time needed to recover,” he stated.
The doctor concluded, “I hope Kate makes a speedy recovery, but also hope she doesn’t return to duties until she’s good and ready.”
Royal expert says the public’s need for Kate’s surgery details could be considered “bullying”
Exactly what Kate’s abdominal surgery was about has not been revealed. The Princess of Wales decided to keep details about her abdominal surgery private, but still, the public wanted to know more about their beloved princess.
Still, the fact that people want more from Kate regarding revealing her health issue has left a royal expert concerned. Richard Eden appeared on the show Palace Confidential and came to Kate Middleton’s defense. He even said that the public has written letters to The Times and written them online to ask for more information.
He even said that pressuring Kate into giving updates could come across as “bullying.”
“I think that there’s no reason why she should she feel bullied into giving more details,” Eden said. “If she wants to, at a later point, fine, that’s up to her. But, she shouldn’t feel that she has to.”
Eden continued speaking about the comments from the public, saying, “It’s been ‘She should give more details,’ and ‘Why doesn’t she?’”
“And there’s been more pressure, there’s even been letters written to The Times newspaper, saying it would be a great example to other women if she was to be more open about her medical problems and this sort of thing.”
Kate Middleton was bullied in school
While Kate most likely hasn’t gotten information that the public wants answers to, the principle of being bullied isn’t something new for her. In fact, during many of the Princess of Wales’ school years, she was indeed bullied.
Kate Middleton first enrolled at the all-girls boarding school Downe House, which was meant to be a significant step towards learning everything she needed for adult life. However, it turned out that the school – which Carole and Michael reportedly paid around £28,000 in tuition – became a nightmare for Kate.
The young girl studied at the school during the day but didn’t stay there full-time, meaning she never had the chance to lodge with other students. Bonding with them was made more complex, and Kate was even bullied.
A friend at a later school, Gemma Williamson, previously told the Daily Mail: “Apparently, she had been bullied very badly, and she certainly looked thin and pale. She had very little confidence.”
Kate was only 13 when she began her tenure at Downe House in Berkshire. Every girl was a high achiever, and according to Kate’s former classmate Emma Sayle, the princess hated that her school was “cliquey.”
The fact that Kate started at the school two years after her peers – added to the fact that she didn’t ‘live’ there – was a significant factor in why Kate was poorly treated, according to former Downe House student Georgina Rylance.
“It does make a difference going from eleven,” another former Downe House student, Georgina Rylance, told the Sunday Times, as per royal expert Katie Nicholl. “You have two years of bonding, your first time away all together. Even some of the most popular girls in my school had a hard time when they came in at thirteen.”
Headmistress at her school claimed Kate was “too sensitive”
In her book Kate: The Future Queen, Nicholl gives another insight into Kate’s tough time at Downe House and the toxic environment that was her everyday life.
Eventually, Kate decided to tell her parents about everything she had endured, as well as the bullying that took place.
Even then, some claimed that Kate was simply “too sensitive.” Susan Cameron, then headmistress at the school, said she may well have felt like a fish out of water, or “unhappily not in the right place.”
“Certainly, I have no knowledge of any serious bullying at all. But there’s what everyone calls bullying, and there’s actual, real, miserable bullying where someone had a dreadful time, “Cameron told the Mirror.
“That certainly didn’t happen. Yes, there would be teasing. It’s all a part of the normal competition of growing up, of establishing a pecking order,” she continued.
“Girls are cliquey by nature, and they can be rather cruel. If you’re attractive, too, that can be seen as rather a threat. They can sense those who are slightly weaker or who haven’t shown their strengths yet, and it’s those girls who are likely to end up being picked on or teased.
“I think it’s fair to say she was unsettled and not particularly happy. Maybe in Catherine’s case, she just kind of went quiet and didn’t say anything,” the former headmistress continued, later saying that if Kate had been badly bullied, she wouldn’t be the woman she is today.
If you enjoyed this article, perhaps you’d be interested in reading about Kate’s “rotten” condition which once put her in the hospital.
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