Bruce Willis’ Wife Unsure if Actor Is Aware of Dementia Diagnosis

Bruce Willis‘ wife Emma Heming isn’t sure her actor husband is aware of his dementia diagnosis or not.

The former model appeared on The Today Show Monday (Sept. 25) to kick off World Frontotemporal Dementia Awareness Week, where she opened up about her role as Willis’ caregiver and how their family is navigating the disease.

Referring to herself as Willis’ “care partner,” Heming said learning of the 68-year-old actor’s diagnosis was both a “blessing and curse.”

“To finally understand what was happening so that I could be into the acceptance of what is — it doesn’t make it any less painful, but … just being in the know of what is happening to Bruce makes it a little easier. It’s important for care partners to look after themselves so that they can be the best care partner for the person they’re caring for,” she explained.

Heming, who wed Willis in 2009, also revealed it’s “hard to know” whether or not Willis is aware of his condition.

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Calling the Die Hard star “the gift that keeps on giving,” Heming noted the experience is teaching their two daughters — Mabel, 11, and Evelyn, 8 — “love, patience and resilience.”

“It’s teaching them so much [about] how to care and love, and it’s really a beautiful thing amongst the sadness,” she shared.

“Dementia is hard. It’s hard on the person diagnosed, it’s also hard on the family. And that is no different for Bruce, or myself, or our girls. When they say this is a family disease, it really is,” Heming added.

In March 2022, Willis’ family publicly revealed the actor had been diagnosed with aphasia, which affects a person’s language-processing and communication skills.

Willis stepped away from acting shortly after his diagnosis was made public.

Willis was previous married to actress Demi Moore from 1987 to 2000.

The exes share three daughters together: Rumer, 34, Scout, 32, and Tallulah, 29.