Riley Keough Opens up About ‘Hard Days’ Almost 1 Year After Brother Benjamin Keough’s Death

Riley Keough is opening up about how she’s made it through a difficult year following the loss of her brother, Benjamin Keough, who died by suicide on July 12, 2020. The 32-year-old daughter of Lisa Marie Presley and granddaughter of Elvis Presley told InStyle in a new profile that she’s been trying not to bury herself in work or any other kind of vice while mourning her brother.

“I’m really consciously trying to be present, and not use anything as any kind of escape, and be cognizant of when I’m doing that,” Riley shared, adding that she’s “generally trying to be grateful for everything at the moment” considering everything that the last year has brought. “[I’m] trying to operate in love, and keep my heart open, and give and receive love. And not in a woo-woo way, because I definitely have hard days, and all kinds of pain and suffering and all that,” she explained. “But I think when you realize that’s part of it, and your expectation isn’t to just be feeling joy.”

Riley has paid tribute to her brother in many ways following his death, getting his name tattooed on her collarbone shortly after he passed. In October, she celebrated what would have been his 28th birthday by sharing photos of the two to her Instagram.

In March, the Zola actress announced on Instagram that she had completed a training course to become an end-of-life doula, a person who assists in the dying process. She explained that after finishing her training, she “felt like writing such a deep thank you to this community,” that is teaching and training people “in conscious dying and death work.”

“We are taught that [death is] a morbid subject to talk about. Or we’re so afraid of it that we’re unable to talk about it… then of course it happens to us, and we are very ill prepared,” she continued. “I think it’s so important to be educated on conscious dying and death the way we educate ourselves on birth and conscious birthing. We prepare ourselves so rigorously for the entrance and have no preparation for our exit.”

If you or someone you know is in crisis, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741-741.