Emma Heming Willis remembers she ‘desperately’ needed help after Bruce Willis’ dementia diagnosis
Emma Heming Willis is revealing how “desperate” she was and how much help she needed after revealing her husband Bruce Willis’ frontotemporal dementia (FTD) diagnosis.
On May 3, Emma Heming Willis 45, attended the AFTD 2024 education conference and talked about learning more about the disease as well as finding community. In a clip from the event posted to Instagram on May 6, Emma was asked what changed for her and her family after publicly sharing the Die Hard star’s health battle.
“I could breathe,” she admitted. “I could exhale and feel this weight lift off my shoulders. But as soon as we were able to reveal his diagnosis, everything changed for the better. “I was able to get the support I so desperately needed for my husband, our entire family.”
Emma later reposted the video, saying, “My mission is to raise as much awareness as I can about FTD. My goal? One day we will see treatments and cures. Also read – Wednesday Season 2 Full Cast Announced
Bruce Willis’ family reveals his FTD
Bruce’s family released a group statement in February 2023 revealing his FTD diagnosis, which read, “Bruce has always found joy in life – and helped everyone he knew to do the same.”
They added, “It means a lot for the world to see that spirit of caring has returned to them and to all of us. Thank you for the love you have shared for our loving husband, father and friend during this difficult time. We are very impressed,” they said at the time.
The family concluded, “Your continued compassion, understanding and respect will enable us to help Bruce live as full a life as possible.”
Frontotemporal dementia is an umbrella term for a group of brain disorders that threaten the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain. This means that parts of these lobes are atrophy, and shrinkage of these areas can lead to speech problems, emotional problems, and personality changes.
Other symptoms may include loss of motor skills – trouble walking, trouble swallowing or muscle cramps. Symptoms get worse over time. Patients usually start showing symptoms between the ages of 40-65, but it can affect younger people as well. It is the most common form of dementia in people under the age of 60. Also read –
Emma Heming Willis is trying to raise awareness about how the media misleads people about neurological diseases’ effects on families
On March 3, Emma Heming Willis posted a candid video on Instagram, hoping to convey how inaccurate media coverage of neurocognitive diseases can impact families — including her own. She shared her reaction to being “clickbait” by a headline about Bruce’s health.
“The title basically says there is no happiness in my husband anymore. Now, all I can tell you is that this is so far from the truth,’ Emma began. “I need society – and whoever is writing these stupid headlines – to stop scaring people. Stop scaring people into thinking that once they are diagnosed with some type of neurocognitive disorder, that’s all. ‘it’s all over. Let’s pack it. We are – nothing else to see here. Our work is completed. No.”
Emma Heming Willis said her family’s experience amid Bruce’s FTD diagnosis has been “completely opposite.”
“There is sadness and sorrow. It’s everything but you start a new chapter,” Emma said at the time, adding that the new chapter “is full of love, it’s full of connection, it’s full of joy, it’s full of happiness. “