Joey Essex has paid tribute to his late mother, on what would have been her birthday.
The former TOWIE star, 31, took to Instagram on Wednesday night, to share a childhood snap of himself lying next to his beloved mum, Tina Essex.
In the heartwarming image, Joey and mum Tina pose for the camera together while lying on a bed - with Tina lovingly places an arm over her young son.
Joey was just 10-year-old when Tina took her own life.
"It don’t get easier, but I do this all for you. I got nothing to prove to anyone but you mum," the reality TV star began his moving caption with on Instagram.
"I’ll keep trying to make you proud.
He added: "Smiling as much as possible. One day I’ll see you again anyway… happy birthday."
Frankie Sims - Joey's cousin - was one of the hundreds to comment on the moving post, leaving a red love heart emoji underneath the tribute.
"We Love you mum," big sister Frankie Essex wrote to her sibling, going on to post her own tribute on her page.
Last year, Joey opened up about how his mother's death impacted him as a child, for the BBC Three documentary Joey Essex: Grief and Me.
The reality TV star won praise from critics and viewers, as he confessed to being consumed by dark moments as he dealt with grief at such a young age.
"The worst pain I’ve ever felt in my life was the day I found out that my mum disappeared," Joey said ahead of the show's premiere last June.
He candidly added: "I chose at a young age, at 10 years old, [that] I’d never talk about it."
Following Tina's death, Joey struggling to even say the word 'mum' - doing anything he could to avoid discussing or acknowledging what had happened.
"Behind closed doors I deal with pain every single day. I’ve been dealing with it my whole life," he explained.
"It’s still here. It’s always been the same, it’s never got easier, it’s just dragged on.
He added: "People don’t see this, but it’ll be Mother’s Day, or it’ll be coming up to mum’s birthday and I’d be sitting in my house alone… I’d just have all the family pictures out, I’d be staring at them.
"I would burst into tears, crying on my own. I wouldn’t tell anyone that either."
Joey Essex: Grief and Me saw the former I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! star attend therapy regularly for the first time in his life.
"It was only when it was the right time for me, that I started noticing that I probably did need help," Joey admitted in June 2021.
"I could have done this documentary a long time ago, but I was never ready."
*If you are struggling with mental health, you can speak to a trained advisor from Mind mental health charity on 0300 123 3393 or email info@mind.org.uk
