The late Robin Williams’ son, Zak Williams, has shared a touching tribute to his father on what would have been his 73rd birthday.
Taking to X (formerly known as Twitter), the 41-year-old penned: “Dad, on what would be your 73rd birthday, I remember you for all the hope and joy you brought to the world.
“There’s not a week that goes by without someone sharing with me how you helped them through a dark time or a rough patch. “
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The post concluded: “I’m so grateful to be your son. Love you forever.”
Zak accompanied his heartfelt caption with an old black and white photo of his late dad smiling and pretending to meditate.
The famed comedian and actor died by suicide in 2014 after battling Lewy Body Dementia; his son has been taking up mental health advocacy and honouring his dad since his death.
In a 2021 Apple TV+ docu-series, The Me You Can’t See, Zak appeared in an episode alongside Prince Harry. Both admitted they struggled with knowing how to grieve in the public eye.
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“I had trouble differentiating that grieving process at first,” Zak said, opening up about his struggle to balance grieving privately and sharing his grief with fans.
“It was really challenging for me. I found myself really emotionally dysregulated, feeling vulnerable and exposed when I wasn’t ready to be vulnerable,” he added.
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“That created a major challenge for me.”
Zak added he wasn’t able to properly process what had happened until over a year after his father passed away, sharing he hadn’t realised he had to “grieve privately.”
“I’m very thankful and appreciative that I did recognise how to set boundaries,” he explained.
“I hope they’re health boundaries, around grieving personally versus grieving as a community, grieving with the public, grieving with the world.”
If you or someone you know is in need of support contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue. In the event of an emergency dial Triple Zero (000).
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