Vanessa Bryant Gets Candid About Grief Ahead of Anniversary of Kobe and Gianna's Deaths

Vanessa Bryant is getting candid about grief and the suicidal thoughts that can happen after loss. Kobe Bryant's widow took to Instagram Story on Friday to encourage people to find their reason to live, as well as share how she's been coping since losing her husband and their 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, in a helicopter crash almost a year ago.

"Let me be real - Grief is a messed up cluster of emotions. One day you're in the moment laughing and the next day you don't feel like being alive," Vanessa began. "I want to say this for people struggling with grief and heartbreaking loss. Find your reason to live. I know it's hard."

"I look at my daughters and I try to push through that feeling for them," she continued. "Death is guaranteed but living the rest of the day isn't. Find your reason."

Vanessa and Kobe also shared 17-year-old daughter Natalia, 4-year-old Bianka and 1-year-old Capri.

Vanessa's post comes less than two weeks before the one-year anniversary of Kobe and Gianna's death. On Jan. 26, 2020, a helicopter crashed into the hills of Calabasas, California, killing the Los Angeles Laker, his daughter and seven others.

Vanessa made her first public appearance following Kobe and Gianna's deaths at the memorial service held at the Staples Center on Feb. 24. She delivered tearful but composed tributes, first to her daughter -- "an amazingly sweet and gentle soul" -- and then to her husband, a larger-than-life figure who, to her, was simply "Papi Chulo."

"I couldn't see him as a celebrity, nor as an incredible basketball player," she said of Kobe. "He was my sweet husband and the beautiful father of our children. He was mine. He was my everything."

Since their deaths, Vanessa has honored and paid tribute to her loved ones on their birthdays and anniversaries, as well as celebrated when the Lakers won the 2020 championship.

For more on the Bryant family, see below.

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