HEALTHSteve Irwin's 'Terrible Insomnia' Revealed: Daughter Bindi Says Late Dad 'Never Slept' and Would Start Every Day at 2 A.M.
Bindi Irwin was 8 years old when her famous father, Steve Irwin, tragically died.
The world is still learning about the fascinating Steve Irwin more than 18 years after his tragic passing.
The famed crocodile hunter's daughter, Bindi, 26, reflected on her father's legacy during a guest appearance on the Tuesday, February 4, episode of Sarah Grynberg's "A Life of Greatness" podcast, where she also revealed an unknown health struggle her dad faced throughout his lifetime.
Steve Irwin was fatally pierced in the chest by a sting ray in September 2006.
Calling her childhood "a whirlwind," Bindi admitted she and her brother, Robert, 21, were raised in "a hurricane of adventure and wonder because of dad."
Although he died on September 4, 2006, after being pierced in the chest by a short-tail stingray barb while filming in the Great Barrier Reef, Steve's children are still discovering things about him.
Bindi Irwin recently revealed her late dad struggled with insomnia.
One recent finding included old journals her father would work on during the early hours of the morning due to his poor sleeping patterns.
"He had terrible insomnia. I mean, he just never slept," she shared. "A couple weeks ago, we were going through some of his things because we were cleaning out one of our old cupboards in an office [at Australia Zoo], because we were renovating our offices."
Steve Irwin would spend the early hours of the morning researching.
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"Hidden in the back of the cupboards" were tons of Steve's old scientific research, Bindi noted.
"We were going through his cupboards. And people may not realize that he had such a scientific mind," she explained. "I was looking through his journals and he would just write down, I mean, thousands, it's not an exaggeration, but thousands of pages worth of information and facts and studies and findings."
Elaborating on his insomnia, Bindi mentioned: "Dad would wake up at 2 a.m. in the morning. I swear to you, his day would start at 2 a.m. And by the time everyone else's workday has started, he'd put in a full day's work."
Since he couldn't sleep, Steve would spend the hours before sunrise "researching and studying" peacefully while the rest of the world was "dark."
"And that's where these these journals came from," Bindi added. "It is unbelievable how much time and effort he spent just researching every facet of the information that people shared with him."
Steve's daughter pointed out how fans remember the renowned conservationist for "who he was on their TV screens... this passionate, wild human being," however, Bindi admitted: "But I really wish people could have also seen his scientific mind, which was second to none."
Steve Irwin was 44 years old when he died.
Reflecting on life after her dad's devastating death, Bindi, who was only 8 at the time of Steve's passing, confessed her fear of forgetting about the wildlife educator.
"I remember when I was little and dad had just died, every adult that I saw would say to me: 'Time heals all wounds,'" she recalled. "And I remember thinking, as an 8-year-old: 'What in the heck does that mean?' Why do people keep telling me like, one day I'll forget about this?'"
"It actually made me a little bit scared," she sighed, noting her awareness now that the "information was wrong."
Bindi declared: "So firstly, don't say that to an 8-year-old. Time changes your grief. Time changes things and your perspective and everything."
"But I know firsthand that the grief and the sadness and the feeling of loss from losing dad. That feeling is just a part of me. It's like a scar on your heart," she concluded.
