When an Ohio man decided to tell his young son that his mother had died of a heroin overdose, he did what most dads would never dream of doing: He filmed the moment and posted it to the internet.

Brenden Bickerstaff-Clark’s 2-minute Facebook video, which purports to show the moment his 8-year-old learned the terrible news, has gone viral, with more than 596,000 shares and over 23 million views.

Many viewers were disturbed that a father would ever record such a thing, but Bickerstaff-Clark insists he made the video as a wake-up call for other drug addicts with kids.

In the footage, Bickerstaff-Clark holds the boy’s hand as he says: “I have something to tell you, OK?”

“Mommy died last night.”

“What? What do you mean, my mom? How?” the distressed child replies.

“From drugs,” Bickerstaff-Clark says before his son breaks down in tears.

He then climbs over the picnic table, wrapping his son in a big hug while telling him, “I love you.”

Bickerstaff-Clark shared the video Monday, pleading with his friends to share his family’s story.

“Don’t let this disease have to make someone tell your child that your dead because of drugs. This was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do,” he wrote on the post. “My son has no mother because of heroin.”

He continued, “Please get help so our children don’t have to suffer. This wasn’t staged. This was real.”

Some commenters were aghast that the dad would record such a personal moment.

“If u love your son so much, why would u film his grief and post it all over facebook,” one wrote. “Doesn’t need to be here. Sorry for your son’s loss, but this was not the way to tell him.”

Bickerstaff-Clark revealed in the post that he too is a recovering addict who has been clean for more than three months.

“Keep up your sobriety. Your son needs you more than ever,” one person commented.