Princess of Wales calls for end to ‘stigma’ around addiction

The Princess of Wales called for an end to the “stigma” surrounding addiction and urged people to offer “empathy and support” to those addicted to alcohol, drugs or gambling.

Catherine, who sent the message to mark Drug Awareness Week, said “significant progress” had been made in better understanding addiction but warned there was still more to do.

The princess is patron of The Forward Trust, a charity which attempts to break the cycle of addiction and is behind the campaign which will run from November 23-30.

Catherine, who also campaigned on mental health issues, draws parallels between the two conditions in her message.

She said addiction was “not a personal choice or failure, but a complex mental health issue that should be treated with empathy and support.”

She added: “But even today, in 2025, people’s experience of addiction is shaped by fear, shame and judgment. This needs to change.

“The stigma surrounding those who face addiction allows it to thrive behind closed doors, impacting families and communities and ultimately ruining lives.”

The princess said many people would know someone struggling with addiction.

“Now is the time to show our compassion and love to help them or their friends and family contact organizations like The Forward Trust for support,” she said.

“Recovery is difficult, but with the right treatment, it is possible. And it starts with a conversation, a listening ear, and showing us that we care.”

Catherine launched the first Drug Awareness Week in 2021 on behalf of the trust and its Take Action Against Drugs campaign.

She concluded her message by urging people to have open conversations to bring addiction and the harm it causes “out of the shadows.”

This is not the first time that Catherine has spoken out on the issue of addiction.

In 2022, she provided personal support to people struggling with addictions, telling them that shame should not stop them from getting help and urging the public to adopt a more compassionate attitude towards the disease.

Former England and Arsenal captain Tony Adams, who spent 11 years in addiction, also recorded a video to launch a series of films demonstrating the power of open conversations in the journey to recovery.

In the film, he reveals that a conversation with his mother-in-law Barbara was the catalyst for getting help.

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Adams, who is now chairman of the board of the Forward Trust, said: “If you are suffering from an addiction or mental health issue, then contact us and get the right help. The best thing I ever did was say, “I can’t do this.”

The charity provides services including employment support and addressing drug and addiction issues in prison.

Before the Princess of Wales became patron of the Forward Trust, she twice visited the charity’s drug services at HMP Send, a women’s prison in Surrey.

The trust also called for greater recognition of the scale of gambling in prisons.

Several people struggling with addiction contacted the BBC after reading Catherine’s message.

Steve Jones said he “turned to alcohol and drugs” to “help wipe it all out” after spending 40 years in the military. After losing friends in a helicopter crash and seeing a man die in a car crash, Mr. Jones said he “bottled up all these emotions that had all come up five years ago.”

He believes the Princess of Wales’ open discussion about addiction and mental health will help break down stigma and encourage understanding.

Another reader, who only wanted to be named MD, said he had struggled with gambling for around 20 years, calling it “an addiction that can only be hidden by lying and deceiving people.”

MD believes that Addiction Awareness Week and Catherine’s message have “incredible intent”, but “the stigma and shame attached to something like this literally drives people to suicide.”

Additional reporting by Alex Emery