Kate Middleton’s stay at The London Clinic was probably more extended than both she and the public expected. The Princess of Wales remained in the private hospital for nearly two weeks, which had some royal experts concerned.
Prince William was said to have visited his wife almost every day she remained in the hospital. However, even though reports suggested their three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, had visited her, they never did.
Now, a royal expert suggests that Kate decided not to have her children visit her in the clinic. And the reason why is quite reasonable.
Kate Middleton’s abdominal surgery was “planned,” according to the Kensington Palace statement. Even so, royal fans worldwide were shocked when the palace released the news in mid-January.
The Princess of Wales had not shown any signs of feeling ill, even though she hadn’t been seen in public for some weeks when the surgery news was delivered.
Kate Middleton – abdominal surgery
One reason for that was, of course, that the royal family celebrated Christmas. Then, Kate celebrated her birthday with close friends and family at the family retreat of Anmer Hall, located on the Sandringham Estate.
Kate Middleton’s surgery was successful, and the first statement was released just after it was conducted. The princess stayed at The London Clinic in central London for almost two weeks to recover. Meanwhile, one royal expert was concerned about Kate staying for two whole weeks.
Speaking with GB News, royal expert and author Angela Levin said it’s “unusual” to stay for 14 days, especially considering it’s the Princess of Wales.
“If at home you’ve got all the comfort that you could have with someone coming in and looking after you,” Levin said. “She could have nurses galore, and the children could see their mother. But she is there for 14 days, and they seem very firm that she won’t be doing anything until around Easter, which is a very long time.”
“I think that’s the most scary thing about it. She works so hard and tries so hard that I think it’s very concerning that she’s there. She’s not the sort of woman who wants to stay in a hospital.”
While Angela Levin was concerned that Kate Middleton could stay at the hospital for two weeks, a royal source told People Magazine that there was nothing to worry about.
“It is good for all of us to see her taking the time”
The amount of time Kate spent at The London Clinic, the source said, didn’t have a connection to her health status.
“It does sound serious with the length of time [she’s taking]. But she is in great hands and will have lots of care and support at home and is a fit young woman. I am sure she will bounce back,” the source said at the time.
“It is sensible to take the time. That is a great example to the rest of us, as you’re often told to get back to work as soon as possible, which can be damaging. It is good for all of us to see her taking the time, recovering properly and then coming back. We can all learn from that.”
Even though Princess Kate is a public figure – and her work is essentially “paid for” by the UK taxpayers – she is a person just like anyone else. Therefore, she doesn’t have to reveal everything regarding her medical condition, which she didn’t.
In the first statement made by Kensington Palace, it said that Kate hoped that “the public will understand her desire to maintain as much normality for her children as possible” and also that she wished that “her personal medical information remains private.”
At the same time, royal fans wanted to know everything about Kate’s medical condition. Royal expert Richard Eden appeared on the show Palace Confidential and stated that people even had written letters to The Times as well as online to ask for more information about what the surgery was really about.
However, the fact that people want more from Kate regarding revealing her health issue left Eden very concerned.
Royal expert says pressuring Kate for medical details is “bullying”
In his opinion, pressuring Kate into giving updates and sharing more information about her medical condition could even 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 has previously revealed that hospitals aren’t her favorite place in the world, just like most of us. When she had given birth to her firstborn son and future king, Prince George, she stated that she wanted to go home as quickly as possible, as it wasn’t “a place I wanted to hang around in.” because of her previous experiences.
Prince William was said to have visited his wife at the hospital daily. While she was still at The London Clinic, he postponed all royal engagements, mainly to care for the couple’s three children, including driving them to school.
Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis didn’t visit Kate at the hospital
At first, reports stated that George, Charlotte, and Louis had visited their mother at the hospital, even though no pictures of them arriving had reached the media. However, the complete opposite was reported later: The royal kids hadn’t been at their mother’s side at the hospital once.
Instead, Kate used her phone to talk to – and see – her children. According to Hello Magazine’s royal editor, Emily Nash, the Princess of Wales has used her phone to call her children via FaceTime.
“Kate loves FaceTiming the children when she is working away overseas, so I’m sure they will be in regular contact while she’s in hospital, and the kids will be keen to see her as soon as she’s well enough,” Nash said.
“Both William and Kate are very hands-on parents – they take the kids to school, attend sports matches and concerts, and try to be home for bedtime as much as they can. While Kate is in hospital, William will be at home keeping things as normal as possible.”
While Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis have school and most likely other activities after school, it’s hard to imagine that the reason why they didn’t visit would’ve been because of a tight schedule.
George, Charlotte, and Louis certainly wanted to visit their mother. But it appears that it is Kate – and the hospital – that said no.
Why Kate Middleton said ‘no’ to her children visiting her at hospital, revealed
According to royal expert and biographer Ingrid Seward, Kate Middleton herself considerately chose not to have her children visiting her at The London Clinic. Speaking to People Magazine, she claimed it wasn’t about her not wanting to see them – but rather because she wanted to respect other patients.
“I don’t think she wanted to make more of a big thing of it than it already was. They’ll be rallying ’round in their own way and helping to look after her,” Ingrid Seward told People.
Meanwhile, there could have been other factors that contributed to Kate’s decision. As Kate is a royal family member, the hospital would surely have allowed George, Charlotte, and Louis to visit her if she had asked for it.
However, according to The London Clinic’s website, children are generally not allowed to visit without permission from the hospital, mainly due to the safety of the patients and to reduce the risks of infections spreading.
On January 29, 13 days following her abdominal surgery, Kate was finally discharged from The London Clinic and returned to her home, Adelaide Cottage, to continue her recovery. As per the initial statement, she won’t return to royal duty until after Easter, at best.
“The Princess of Wales has returned home to Windsor to continue her recovery from surgery. She is making good progress,” Kensington Palace said in a statement. “The Prince and Princess wish to say a huge thank you to the entire team at The London Clinic, especially the dedicated nursing staff, for the care they have provided.
George, Charlotte, and Louis made Kate’s favorite snacks when she got home
“The Wales family continues to be grateful for the well wishes they have received from around the world,” the statement continued.
The princess finally got to see her children, and it’s said she got quite a welcome from George, Charlotte, and Louis. US Magazine reported that while they didn’t visit their mother at the hospital, the three children have been very hands-on since she returned home.
A source told the news outlet: “They’ve all made her some ‘get well soon’ cards along with some of her favourite snacks.”
Throughout their children’s lives, Prince William and Kate Middleton have tried to give their children a normal childhood. The Princess of Wales comes from a non-royal background, which was rather down-to-earth, which she has implemented regarding raising their children. And it sure looks like it has been a home run.
“Those children look pretty happy with life,” a palace insider told People last year. “A lot of it is the stabilizing normality Kate brings — and that’s how she grew up. William absolutely loves it.”
“Coming from a different background, she appreciates the
importance of having family time,” another source close to the royal household told the US news outlet. “She wasn’t brought up in that aristocratic setting where you see the children for a short time each day.”
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