Valerie Bertinelli has opened up about her family's mourning since the death of her ex-husband Eddie Van Halen this past October.
Bertinelli and Van Halen divorced in 2007 after 26 years of marriage, but remained close friends in the ensuing years, speaking regularly and celebrating special occasions together.
"It's been rough. Very bittersweet," Bertinelli told the Today show of the time period encompassing the final downturn in Eddie's health and his eventual passing.
Bertinelli noted in a social post the day of Eddie's death that the couple had spent the past 40 years with one another, 29 of which with their son, Wolfgang Van Halen. Their tight-knit family unit has made the loss more devastating, but it also has provided valuable support.
"It's hard," she continued. "I've gone to text him a few dozen times. I was like, 'Oh, I can't text him right now.'"
Bertinelli and her son spent the holidays together. She said Christmas and New Year's were a "much-needed time" for them to have together amid the pandemic isolation and mourning Eddie.
The younger Van Halen, too, has spoken publicly about his mourning process, openly wondering if or how much he'll ever recover.
Wolfie officially launched his solo band, Mammoth WVH, in November with the hit single, "Distance," which was dedicated to his late-father.
"As much as I'd like to just crawl in a hole and stay there for the rest of my life, my father would be so disappointed," he wrote in a New Year's Day social post. "I've gotta keep moving. If not for me, then for him."
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