By Michaela Gordoni
Bruce Willis doesn’t realize his brain and body aren’t working like they used to, but his wife is happy about it.
His wife, Emma Heming Willis, said, “There is this term, this neurological condition, that comes with FTD (Frontotemperal Dementia) and other types of dementia that’s called anosognosia, where your brain can’t identify what is happening to it. Where people think this might be denial, like where they don’t want to go to the doctor because ‘I’m fine.’”
“It’s actually…this is the anosognosia that comes into play…Bruce never tapped in,” she said. “He never connected the dots that he had this disease. I’m really happy about that. I’m really happy he doesn’t know about it.”
On Instagram in September, Heming Willis called Bruce’s anosognosia a blessing that spared him the burden of knowing he’s ill.
But for her, “it was the curse of having to navigate it while carrying the weight of what he could not see. This is the reality for many families facing FTD, and it deserves to be better understood… I didn’t learn this in the doctor’s office either. I learned it because I went digging for answers.”
Related: Emma Heming Willis Spotlights Caregivers After Gene Hackman, Wife’s Deaths
Fortunately, Bruce doesn’t have any difficulties with recognition and knows his family when he sees them.
“He has a way with connecting with me, our children, that might not be the same as you would connect with your loved one but it’s still very beautiful and meaningful. It’s just different. You just learn how to adapt,” Heming Willis said.
In August, Heming Willis told ABC News that Bruce is still physically active.
“Bruce is in really great health overall, you know. It’s just his brain that is failing him…The language is going, and, you know, we’ve learned to adapt,” she explained. “And we have a way of communicating with him, which is just a…different way.”
Heming Willis recognized Bruce wasn’t himself a few years ago. He had started to talk less.
“When the family would get together, he would kind of just melt a little bit,” she explained. “He felt a little removed, very cold. Not like Bruce, who is very warm and affectionate. To go in the complete opposite of that was alarming and scary.”
Last year, Heming Willis wrote a book called The Unexpected Journey about her experience as a caregiver to Bruce.
“This book was written to be a companion for caregivers — part resource, part reminder, part heart-to-heart,” Heming Willis said. “My hope is that it will bring comfort, guidance, and connection to the next care partner walking this difficult path.”
Her book is available wherever books are sold.
Read Next: Emma Heming Willis ‘Could Breathe’ After Sharing Bruce Willis’ Dementia Diagnosis
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