Meghan Markle Says She Was “Most Trolled Person in the Entire World”

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Meghan Markle Shares Peek at Easter Egg Hunt With Kids Archie and Lilibet

Meghan Markle knows the pitfalls of social media firsthand. 

And when visiting with students from Australia’s Swinburne University of Technology with Prince Harry, the Duchess of Sussex recounted the struggles she’s experienced on the internet.

“For now, 10 years, every day for 10 years, I have been bullied and attacked,” she told the students, per Reuters. “And I was the most trolled person in the entire world. Now I’m still here.”

Meghan noted how social media companies are not necessarily “incentivized to stop” harassment, something that’s on her mind as she considers the future for younger generations. 

“When I think of all of you and what you’re experiencing,” the 44-year-old continued. “I think so much of that is having to realize that you know that industry, that billion-dollar industry, that is completely anchored and predicated on cruelty to get clicks—that’s not going to change. So, you have to be stronger than that.”

This is not the first time Meghan has spoken out against the abuse she’s received online in the years since she and Harry began dating in 2016—an occurrence she said reached its height when she was pregnant with her and Harry’s kids, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, now 6 and 4, respectively.

What Meghan said should be a “tender and sacred” time in her life, she recounted on a SXSW Conference in March 2024, instead led to the “bulk of the bullying and abuse” she’d experienced.

Jonathan Brady-Pool/Getty Images

"To really wrap your head around why people would be so hateful," Meghan reflected at the time, "it's not catty—it's cruel. And why would [you] do that, certainly, when you're pregnant, with a newborn?"

Thankfully, in hindsight she thinks being pregnant and a new mom actually helped her weather the storm. 

"Because I was pregnant, that mammalian instinct just kicked in," Meghan recalled. "You do everything you can to protect your child, and as a result, protect yourself too."

At the time, the Suits alum said she stayed away from social media for her “own wellbeing.” 

Jonathan Brady-Pool/Getty Images

And indeed, Meghan closed down her personal Instagram account in 2018, the year she and Harry tied the knot. 

“Ms. Markle is grateful to everyone who has followed her social media accounts over the years,” a Kensington Palace representative told HuffPost of her decision at the time, “however, as she has not used them for some time, she has taken the decision to close them.”  

She didn’t return to social media until she reactivated her Instagram account in January 2025. And while Meghan has kept her comment section turned off since her return, she hasn’t shied away from sharing the occasional glimpse into her and Harry’s private world with their kids.

For more insight into the pair’s family life, read on.  

Instagram / Meghan Markle

Mom & Daughter

Meghan and Princess Lilibet enjoyed some time in the garden in April 2025.

Instagram / Meghan Markle

Smelling the Roses

Prince Archie also enjoyed examining the roses in a garden in April 2025.

Instagram / Meghan Markle

Dad & Daughter

Harry and Princess Lilibet shared a sweet moment on a boat ride in March 2025.

Meghan Markle/Instagram

Valentine's Day 2025

Prince Archie enjoyed the holiday celebration with fresh strawberries to boot.

Instagram / Meghan Markle

Auntie Serena Williams

Princess Lilibet played a game with her mom's friend in early 2025.

SussexRoyal/Instagram

Archie and His Papa

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex included this image of their "2019 in review" Instagram video on New Year's Eve.

Toby Melville - Pool/Getty Images

South Africa Tour

In 2019, the couple brought Archie, then 3 months old, on their Royal tour of South Africa, during which they met Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

Duke of Sussex / @SaveChildrenUK / Shutterstock

Birthday Story Time

Meghan was seen reading the book Duck! Rabbit!" to Archie on his first birthday, May 6, 2021.

DOMINIC LIPINSKI/AFP via Getty Images

Royal Baby

Meghan and Harry present their newborn son Prince Archie, then known as Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, in St George's Hall at Windsor Castle in Windsor, England in May 2021.

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