Lee Thompson Young’s untimely death was quite shocking for millions of fans around the world.

Now, as the one-year anniversary of his death approaches, his family is finally breaking their silence about the tragic loss.

According to WIS-TV, the late actor’s mother Velma Love revealed that her son battled bipolar disorder prior to committing suicide last August.

The Famous Jett Jackson star reportedly suffered from the mental disorder since he was a teenager.

“In his late teenage years, he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and I noticed some periods of sadness and that stabilized quickly,” said Love of her youngest child. “Some of a person’s inner life, you really don’t know.”

His sister Tamu Lewis also weighed in with details about the Rizzoli & Isles actor. “He would sometimes call me and say he was feeling a little sad again,” Lewis explained. “It was always a quick recovery and I, too, feel that he was always concerned about us. He was always protective of us.”

His mother and sister also shared their perspective of Young’s mental state prior to his death. Surprisingly, he actually seemed to be doing much better. “After we knew that Lee was found dead in his apartment … we, of course, were stunned,” Love says. “I guess [‘why’ is] the question that everyone would ask. And we really don’t know those answers and there’s really no way to know.”

In light of his death, the family  has launched the Lee Thompson Young Foundation, in an effort to remove the stigma associated with mental illnesses.

“I do feel like someone like Lee impacted by [mental illness] and it being in the news … kind of makes it okay. People know that Lee wasn’t the only one,” Lewis said. “For them to see everything he accomplished in the 29 years, it’s more than some people accomplish in their whole lives. He was able to do that with a mental illness and, yes, it ended tragically but, through that we’re inspired.”

Young made his last official television appearance on Rizzoli & Isles Tuesday, June 24 when his character Detective Frost was memorialized.

Image via Rizzoli & Isles, Facebook