Max plays Ben Mitchell in EastEnders (Picture: BBC / Jack Barnes / Kieron McCarron)

EastEnders star Max Bowden has discussed the importance of talking about your feelings after he experienced a sleepless night due to grief and the pain of losing his best friend.

The actor, who portrays Ben Mitchell in the BBC One soap, took to social media to talk about his feelings, and how it’s okay to feel sad, describing how he was overcome with ‘pain from loss’ after having an ‘amazing day’.

‘Grief is so odd,’ he wrote on his Instagram Stories, alongside a picture with his best friend Maxwell, who sadly died last year.

‘Have had an amazing day. Have felt great. And now can’t sleep, and feel in such pain from loss.

‘I think it’s really important to share how we feel. @hussainmanawer taught me that. It’s OK to feel sad, and feel angry.

‘Life’s f***ing cruel. It’s hard. And losing your nearest and dearest is beyond recovery. All we can do is our best.’

Max took to Instagram to reiterate the importance of talking about your feelings (Picture: Instagram / @Bowden5)

‘Tonight might be a bad night, I accept how I feel right now. But I also strive to let myself feel differently tomorrow.

‘This too shall pass. X.’

Max shared news of Maxwell’s death last September, writing a heartfelt message in which he said it was a ‘privilege’ to have been his friend.

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The 27-year-old actor, who previously starred in Waterloo Road, joined the cast of EastEnders in 2019, portraying the sixth iteration of Ben, who has been at the centre of huge storylines since.

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Max took to social media to reiterate the importance of talking about your feelings.