The Duchess of Cambridge spoke frankly about trying to juggle motherhood with one of the world's most high profile jobs in an interview for the Happy Mum, Happy Baby podcast.
When asked whether she had experienced the all too common 'mum guilt', the duchess admitted: ‘Yes absolutely – and anyone who doesn’t as a mother is actually lying. Yes – all the time.’
'Even this morning, coming to the nursery visit here, George and Charlotte were like, "Mummy how could you possibly not be dropping us off at school this morning?",' she said, in what proved to be her most candid interview yet.
Interviewed by Giovanna Fletcher, who has written about her own experience as a mother to three children with her husband, McFly's Tom Fletcher, the Duchess described herself as a 'hands-on-mum'; a fact that's been no secret to the public since Prince George's birth in 2013.
‘There’s such a pull, but I am such a hands-on mum, and whatever you’re doing you want to make sure you’re doing the uttermost best job you can for your children,' she told Giovanna.
The interview, recorded at the end of January, came after the Duchess visited a nursery and pre-school in South London to discuss a strategy that will create the best start in life for children; continuing the duchess's prolific work in early-childhood development.
'You hear it time and time again from mums. Even mums who aren’t necessarily working, aren’t pulled in the directions of having to juggle work life and family life – there’s always something,' Kate, who previously worked in retail and fashion buying before marrying into the royal family, continued. 'And [you are] always sort of questioning your own decision, and your own judgements, and things like that, and I think it starts from the moment you have a baby.'
Kate had previously spoken about her feelings of isolation when living in Wales, following the birth of Prince George.
The Duchess also spoke candidly about her decision to practice hypnobirthing following her struggle with severe morning sickness, describing the practice as 'hugely powerful'.
‘I’m not going to say that William was standing there sort of, chanting sweet nothings at me. He definitely wasn’t,' she joked. 'But it was just something I wanted to do for myself.'
She continued: ‘I saw the power of it really - the meditation and the deep breathing and things like that - that they teach you in hypnobirthing when I was really sick. And actually I realised that this was something I could take control of, I suppose, during labour. It was hugely powerful.'
Listen to Happy Mum, Happy Baby for more.
