Emma Heming Willis shares emotional message about Bruce Willis and FTD advocacy
Emma Heming Willis has paid tribute to her husband, Bruce Willis, during World FTD Awareness Week while continuing her efforts to raise awareness about frontotemporal dementia. Willis was diagnosed with FTD in February 2023 after his family previo...
Awareness campaigns can provide families affected by dementia with an opportunity to share their experiences and encourage greater knowledge of the condition. During World FTD Awareness Week, Emma Heming Willis used the event to speak publicly regarding her husband Bruce Willis and the advocacy work she has continued since his diagnosis.
Emma Heming Willis Pays Tribute to Bruce Willis
Heming Willis took to social media during World FTD Awareness Week, observed from Sept. 28 to Oct. 4, and shared a tribute to her husband.
“I can’t go through World FTD Awareness Week without talking about Bruce. He is the driving force behind my advocacy.”
She stated, “He has opened so many doors for me in this work, and I will continue to walk through them. I will not let his diagnosis be in vain. I know how proud he would be to know that he is helping families living with FTD, other forms of dementia and their care partners be seen and heard.”
<p>Emma Heming Willis has paid tribute to her husband, Bruce Willis, during World FTD Awareness Week while continuing her efforts to raise awareness about frontotemporal dementia. Willis was diagnosed with FTD in February 2023 after his family previously announced that he had been experiencing aphasia.Image: Lumeimages<br></p>
His family first publicly revealed the diagnosis through a statement on the Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration website. The revelation followed an earlier disclosure in 2022 that Willis had been experiencing aphasia.
“Since we announced Bruce’s diagnosis of aphasia in spring 2022, Bruce’s condition has progressed and we now have a more specific diagnosis: frontotemporal dementia (known as FTD). Unfortunately, challenges with communication are just one symptom of the disease Bruce faces. While this is painful, it is a relief to finally have a clear diagnosis,” his family said in the statement.
Heming Willis Opens Up About Grief
Heming Willis has also talked about the emotional impact of caring for someone living with FTD.
Last month, in an interview with Hello! Magazine, she talked about the grief her family continues to experience.
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“It is extremely difficult and painful,” Heming Willis said. “It’s natural, we all want our loved ones to be healthy, full of life and being the person they always were. But FTD is a devastating illness that steals things from you very slowly. So the reality is that you find yourself constantly in a state of grief.”
Supporting Their Daughters
Heming Willis has explained caring for Willis while also supporting their daughters, Mabel, 14, and Evelyn, 12.
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She said the experience has given the girls what she named a “masterclass in pure love.”
“It’s a really delicate balance to strike. Guiding them through something like this – through any serious illness, really – is an enormous challenge. But despite how tough things get, I always try to remind myself that it could be so much worse,” she said.
In August 2023, Heming Willis cited that she had deliberately worked to avoid becoming consumed by the “doom and gloom” connected with caring for someone with dementia.
She described that she was trying to care for Willis while also protecting her own well-being.
“I know it looks like I’m out living my best life,” Heming Willis said. “I have to make a conscious effort every single day to live the best life that I can. I do that for myself. I do that for our two children, and Bruce, who would not want me to live any other way.”
She also talked about assumptions that she was doing well.
“Because I’m not. I’m not good,” she said. “But I have to put my best foot forward for the sake of myself and my family, because again, when we are not looking after ourselves, we cannot look after anyone that we love.
Continuing Advocacy
Heming Willis has continued to use her public platform to raise awareness regarding dementia and caregiving. She also introduced the Emma & Bruce Willis Fund for Dementia Research and Caregiver Support.
Her latest World FTD Awareness Week message again positioned that advocacy at the center of her public work, while highlighting Bruce Willis' continuing significance to her family and her attempts to support other families affected by FTD.
Her message remains focused on awareness, research, caregiving and ensuring that families living with dementia are seen and heard.
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