Harry and Meghan have sent their best wishes to Kate, but where is the apology for the stress they have caused?

With both the King and Princess of Wales in hospital, I briefly wondered if someone in Montecito had stuck needles into the wax figures again.

Sorry, but I don't believe the rumors that Meghan and Harry approached the King and Princess of Wales about their “health concerns.” The reason for concern has long since passed as the Sussexes were busy doing tremendous damage to the royal family's reputation while telling Oprah “our truth.”

If they have made contact, it is probably just to avoid coming across as bad or unpleasant. I think they would be afraid to contact Kate because they know how she would probably react. The poor woman is suffering enough without seeing a sweet message in Meghan's ornate calligraphy.

Although the king, as betrayed and angry as he may feel, still has paternal feelings for his younger son, the abuse Harry's sister-in-law was subjected to is unforgivable. In her Netflix series and in Harry's memoir Spare partThe Sussexes have repeatedly made swipes at Kate.

From the accusation that she made Meghan cry during wedding preparations (ahem, “memories may differ”) to her reluctance to hug Harry's American girlfriend when they first met (I don't know why), the nastiness is endless.

Nothing was worse than Harry's dig at his brother's choice of bride. “I think for many people in the family, particularly the men, there might be a temptation or an urge to marry someone who fits the mold rather than someone they are meant to be with,” Harry mused. “There is a difference between making a decision with your head and making a decision with your heart.”

In other words, “Look at my love marriage compared to Will and Kate’s boring, sensible union!”

No wonder, then, that Robert Hardman’s new, excellent biography Charles III.that Prince William considers those comments “a blatant attack” and “the last straw.” Even the Sussexes' appearance last night alongside the Jamaican prime minister at the glitzy premiere of a new Bob Marley biopic felt like a point win against the Waleses, who had a miserable, diplomatically awkward visit there in 2022. “Look how well we get on with the Jamaican prime minister compared to the stiff, cold William and Kate. It really sucks.”

It is precisely because Catherine is so confident and known for “never making a mistake” that we don't think about the effect this reciprocal behavior has on her. She is beautiful, incredibly privileged and rich, and has a picture-perfect family, so surely all the snide criticism about her coldness must roll off her, right? How can we be sure of that?

Maybe the stress caused by the situation with Meghan and Harry has contributed to her not being well. I'm pretty sure it has. And it can't be very funny when your husband hates the brother you both adored until “me, me, me, me, me” came on the scene.

We know that Kate is in hospital for major abdominal surgery because the recovery time – 10 to 14 days – is so long. A friend who had a hernia after giving birth says Catherine has one because healthy people suffer from them and the recovery time is just as long.

We can't say for sure, of course, but anyone who has ever had an operation that involves cutting into the abdominal muscles will know that it's completely out of line. It's torture to stand upright.

After my c-section I went back to work far too quickly and paid the price. I developed a horrible medieval rash with boils and an infection, although this could also have been due to the hygiene conditions in the NHS hospital where the hair and dead skin cells from previous patients formed a flood line around the bath that no Jif could remove.

It's incredibly stressful and exhausting, even when you have a private hospital room and staff like Kate does. Yet we were told this week that she will “continue her royal work from her bed.” As if anything else would be a sign of laziness. Who sets those standards? Why shouldn't she make a mistake?

God knows she deserves it. She's incredible, she's the Princess of Wales who lights up every room she walks into and we're incredibly lucky to have her. But she's not ours. She belongs to her husband and her children. She belongs to herself.

The only thing that matters now is that she has time to get properly well. Don't come back so quickly, Kate. We need you fit and healthy. The royal family is stronger because it's made up of only people.

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