After Katie Price revealed she was worried her son Harvey was on the “verge of a heart attack”, a source claims she’s feeling huge pressures as his sole carer. Harvey, 22, who is about to move into a new house close to Katie’s Essex home, has a number of health issues including the rare genetic disorder Prader-Willi syndrome which causes behaviour changes, an excessive appetite and overeating, and learning difficulties.
Mum-of-five Katie revealed sadly last week that his weight had almost reached 30 stone, telling listeners of The Katie Price Show podcast, “He’s on the verge of heart attack and he won’t have a long life if he keeps putting more and more weight on. That’s a massive worry for me at the moment.”
Our source claims that, while Katie can be a bit of a divisive character, she shouldn’t be underestimated when it comes to coping with the challenges of caring for her eldest son.
“Katie is really worried for Harvey and his weight, it has got to an uncontrollable level and it’s scary for the family,” the source claimed. “They have such a close bond and it’s difficult for her to watch, she’s trying to keep him as active as she can and support him – she wants him to go on weight loss jabs to manage it.
“There are many things people can say about Katie – maybe the way she courts the press, her surgeries or her bankruptcies, but one thing you can’t hold against her is being a good mum to Harvey. She loves him so much, him being OK is a priority for her.
“He doesn’t have a real father figure, so it all falls to Katie. It’s a heavy burden, making all the decisions and working out what’s best for him, but she’s desperate to save him and she’d be lost without him.”
Katie, who described Harvey in her 2024 autobiography as “the best thing to have happened to me”, also addressed her own mortality, revealing she was making sure that “everything’s in place” for him should the worst happen to her. She and his medical team were planning to start him on NHS-prescribed Mounjaro, she said, explaining it couldn’t be a rash decision.
“Harvey doesn’t speak like us, the communication, but as he’s got older, he’s got better,” she shared. “Because, you want them [carers] to look after them how you would look after them. No one’s going to ever look after your son how mum does it.
“Even when I tuck him in bed, it’s a mum thing. Of course, there’s been challenges but that’s not Harvey’s fault. Obviously, we’re doing something with the doctors but because of his complex needs and medication he’s on, things aren’t as easy as that. It’s always a constant worry – like if I die, what’s going to happen?”.
Katie was just 23 when she gave birth to Harvey and he has been estranged from his dad, former Manchester United star Dwight Yorke, for much of his life. According to our source, the former model is desperate to find a long-term solution to Harvey’s weight issues, but understandably feels the pressure of being the one making all the decisions and would welcome his dad’s support.
“People sometimes forget what she’s been through with him, it’s been traumatic,” they add. “She was a relatively young girl when she had him, and learning about and managing Harvey’s issues was a shock. But she loved him from the second she saw him. She’s always done her best by him and genuinely means it when she says the door is open for Dwight.”
Former Manchester United player Dwight claimed in 2009 that he wanted to play a role in Harvey’s upbringing but “wasn’t given the opportunity”. He said, “I’ve gone down the legal route and I was entitled to see him for a certain period of time, but she calls all the shots.”
Katie recently made the heartbreaking admission that her door was “always open” for Dwight to make contact, and claimed that her mum Amy contacts the sportsman’s manager every year around Harvey’s birthday and at Christmas to ask, “does he want to speak to or see him?”. She told Rob Moore on his Disruptors Podcast that the response was always “the same thing back,not interested”.
Katie was emotional as she discussed the estrangement but said she hoped for a reconciliation. “There’s got to be a time when Dwight and Harvey are in the same room. Because he would just love Harvey if he saw him, how could he not? He looks like him, for God’s sake. Harvey’s so funny, so endearing and innocent. How can he not love Harvey? I just can’t get my head around it, he’d have so much fun with him.”
Katie married her I’m A Celebrity campmate Peter Andre when Harvey was a few years old, and they went on to have Junior and Princess together. There was speculation at the time that Peter, 52, would legally adopt Harvey, but it didn’t happen before they split in 2009.
Our source claims this is also a part Katie’s heartache when it comes to her eldest son. “It was such a shame and a loss when Katie and Pete split because Pete also genuinely loved Harvey and was always great with him,” they claim. “There’ll be deep sadness on both sides because Pete and Harvey were very close, but because of his relationship with Katie, it’s just not possible for them to be how they were.
“I don’t think anyone can know how awful it’s been for her, and that’s partly why she and Harvey have got such a close bond. She’s totally tuned into him, she knows from just one look what he needs and wants, but that’s a lot for one person to carry.”
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