Talinda Bennington, the widow of late Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington, has shared a heartfelt message to celebrate what would have been his 46th birthday.

Bennington passed away in July 2017, having taken his own life at the age of 41. Every year since, Talinda has shared a personal message on Instagram to commemorate his birthday (March 20).

This year’s message was particularly heart-wrenching, as she wrote: “The pain doesn’t get any easier but you get used to it is what they say. I’m not sure I believe that at all. There’s no getting used to this type of grief. I’m doing my best to raise our babies the way we always talked about. You were my other half and it is so hard walking without you. I love you and we are celebrating you today.”

Take a look at Talinda’s post below:

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A post shared by Talinda Bennington (@talinda320)

Following the death of Bennington five years ago, Talinda has been an outspoken advocate for awareness around mental health. On what would have been Bennington’s 42nd birthday, she launched the nonprofit organisation 320 Changes Direction, which aims to make resources more accessible to those struggling with mental illness, and “change the culture” surrounding mental health.

In 2018, Talinda spoke out about the warning signs she’d observed in the months preceding Bennington’s suicide. She explained that she’d become “more educated” about the hints that show someone may be in danger of taking their own lives, saying: “They were definitely there: the hopelessness, the change of behavior, isolation – that was all part of our daily life.”

A year later, she called on fans to share video messages highlighting the importance of being open about mental health. Bennington’s son, Draven, had previously shared a video for Suicide Prevention Week in 2017.

In 2020, Talinda was honoured with a ‘Mental Health Ambassador’ award. It was given to her by Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services, a nonprofit organisation providing mental health, substance abuse and suicide prevention services for over 75 years.

Meanwhile, last April saw Grey Daze – the band fronted by Chester Bennington before he went on to form Linkin Park – announce that they were working on a new album to honour the late singer.

It’ll follow their 2020 effort ‘Amends’, an album of reworked tracks built around Bennington’s original vocal takes. NME called the album “a great modern rock record” in a four-star review.