That, along with the Royal Family’s normal lack of information sharing, has resulted in a storm of supposition that the Palace has been frantically attempting to control.

Their cause was scarcely helped last weekend when the first official portrait of Kate Middleton, intended to commemorate Mother’s Day in the UK, was pulled by numerous news agencies amid suspicions that the image had been “manipulated”.

Kate later admitted to having self-edited the photo in question, but the fact remains that there have been enough questions about the Princess of Wales’s whereabouts and well-being over the last two months to ensure that very few people, if any, are willing to take the Palace at their word when they say everything is fine.

In any event, according to the aforementioned RadarOnline article, Kate is now debating whether or not to completely step away from her royal duties, a decision that has strained her marriage to Prince William, the heir to the throne.

“Kate’s desperate struggle with the constant pressures of life in the royal fishbowl has clearly taken a terrible toll on her physical and mental health,” a top palace insider is quoted as saying in the National Enquirer.

“She spent weeks staying out of the public eye after her operations — and it’s only strengthened her resolve to quit,” the insider went on to say.

According to the same source, William is “beside himself” about Kate’s potential departure.

“William is beside himself over her decision,” the person stated. “He can’t believe his wife would ever consider such a move.

“He made sure she understood what she was getting into when she married him, and she did an excellent job. He is afraid that she has grown emotionally unstable, but she argues that she is now seeing clearly!”

Wow! Are you willing to think Kate Middleton is considering stepping down from royal duties? Please let us know in the comments.