Princess Martha Louise of Norway shared festive photos of her family celebrating their first Christmas on the anniversary of her ex-husband Ari Behn’s suicide.
Mr. Behn, an author who shared three daughters – Maud Angelica, 17, Leah Isadora, 15, and Emma Tallulah, 12 – he and his ex-wife, 49-year-old Princess Martha Louise, took their own lives on Christmas Day last year.
The mother of three shared a festive selfie with her boyfriend Shaman Durek, 49, suggesting that the American spent his day with his family, as well as photos of her three children that day.
She commented: “These holidays were a little different from previous years, but we also managed to catch the spirit of the holiday.
Norway’s 49-year-old Princess Martha Louise has revealed other details about how her family spent their first Christmas on the anniversary of her ex-husband Ari Behn’s suicide (pictured with her boyfriend Shaman Durek)
In one of the photos, Princess Martha Louise’s youngest daughter, 12-year-old Emma, was seen stroking a horse while dressed in a festive red dress.
“One of the most important things I discovered to be a grieving family after Ari, the father of my wonderful children committed suicide a year ago on Christmas day, was to receive love, happiness, fun and games on next to the sadness you can’t avoid when you mourn.
“If being sad and immersed in sadness and mourning means breathing, happiness, love, embracing the Christmas Spirit and so on, breathe.
“As we all know, if we just breathe, we die. If we just breathe, we die too.
She continued: “So we need this balance of the two and to let yourself break from sadness, mourning, tears and darkness, without shame or bad conscience is really important.
Meanwhile, the mother of three shared a selfie with her teenage daughter Leah, who posted an emotional tribute to her father a few days ago
“Allow yourself to feel happiness, to have fun, to enjoy, to laugh, to connect and to love through difficult moments.
“Mourning is mentally and physically tiring, and we all need breaks without shame or bad conscience to fill our vessels.”
She added: “So, please be kind to yourself and see yourself from the perspective of the love that embraces you all.”
Her message comes days after her fifteen-year-old daughter, Leah, paid tribute to her father in an emotional online message.
In addition to sharing photos of her family, the royal said they tried to embrace the “happiness and love” of Christmas with “their inevitable sadness” (pictured with their eldest daughter Maud).
Sharing a selfie with her 36,000 Instagram followers, Leah wrote: “A year ago, my father committed suicide and it was truly one of the hardest years of my life. But if you are alone and / or feel alone, I want you to know that you are not alone! ‘
She urged fans to seek help by posting more links to suicide prevention organizations.
Leah said, “I know my words can’t do anything, but if it can help at least one person, it’s worth so much.
“In these difficult times, mental and physical health are so important!”
Princess Martha Louise’s latest post comes days after her 15-year-old daughter Leah paid tribute to her father a year after her death.
In an emotional Instagram post, the teenager urged those who “feel lonely” to seek help and shared the phone number for suicide prevention services.
She continued: “And if you fight; maybe you are alone, you feel exhausted, depressed, you feel broken, you are going through a loss or you are just trying to hold on, I mean it will be fine.
“I know it may seem impossible, but I promise it will improve. You will succeed. You grow every day and you have a choice to be better. ‘
“It’s okay to feel down, but you have to get up and remember who you are, who you want to be!”
Leah added: “And I can’t speak from your perspective, but I was on the other side. And I can tell you that it hurts.
The young woman asked her followers to seek help and said that she “promises to improve” in the emotional post on Instagram, to mark the death of her father.
“I know there is someone out there who will take care of YOU and who you are. And please, if you have to talk, please contact someone. I know I’d rather listen to your problems and then attend your funeral.
It comes after Princess Martha Louise posted online a tribute to her ex-husband.
Sharing a post of a festive tree ornament last night on Instagram, the royal said her family marked a “very different” Christmas, saying: “We celebrated her life today, we cried for her loss and how much we miss her. by him. It was a day to love whatever it is.
The mother of three urged her followers to “ask for help” if they fight, adding: “I address all those who fight for the holidays. Know that you are loved. Know that you are needed. You know you deserve the help you can get.
Meanwhile, Princess Martha paid tribute to her ex-husband Ari Behn a year after her death (Pictured, Martha Louise and Ari Behn at the wedding of Prince Carl Philip of Sweden in 2015)
In the emotional post, Princess Martha wrote: “I just wanted to wish you all a Merry Christmas.
“This year was a very different holiday season, because Ari, the beloved father of my three daughters, is no longer with us. He chose to leave this plane last year on this day. ‘
She continued: “LIFE hits us all. We can’t avoid it. We need to meet him. Please ask for help. Please express how you are. You are loved.’
A few weeks ago, Princess Martha’s daughter Maud Angelica, 17, paid tribute to her father in an interview.
In an emotional post, Princess Martha said that the family “mourned his loss and how much we miss him” on Christmas Day
Speaking to Voici, Maud said her father was “someone who would stop to talk to an acquaintance” and a man “really interested in people.”
“He was a generous man, who always had beautiful and poetic compliments to give you,” he was very good at it, “she said.
Speaking about how she processes her pain, the 17-year-old said: “I think it will always be a little difficult. Of course, the pain will become less and less difficult to manage over time. But we never get over the pain. Finally, we accept and decide to focus on life.
After the divorce, Mr. Behn wrote a book Inferno, which critics described as “expiring despair and sadness” and describing his struggles with mental health, headaches, hallucinations and difficulty breathing.
Leah, photographed with her sisters Maud, Emma and Princess Marhta Louise at Ari Behn’s funeral, said the loss of her father still “really hurts.”
Promoting the literary work last year, he told the Norwegian newspaper VG: “It’s yesterday’s news, even if it hasn’t been told to the world yet. I’m a clown, at worst. At best, I am a publicist and a public actor. To many I am a fool.
Princess Martha Louise has since begun a relationship with her 44-year-old “twin flames” shaman, Durek Verrett, based in Los Angeles, with whom she began dating after becoming his client.
Mr. Durek, who is a close friend of Gwyneth Paltrow, claims to be a 6th-generation shaman and can communicate between “physical and spiritual planes.”