Emma Heming Admits She’s ‘Not Good’ But Still ‘Doing The Best’ She Can In Caring For Bruce Willis

Aug 16, 2023

Bruce Willis is one of the most legendary Hollywood actors of all time. He is most famous for his roles in action films, including the "Die Hard" franchise, as well as notable roles in "Pulp Fiction," "Armageddon" and "The Sixth Sense," among many other films. During his nearly 40-year career, Bruce showed off quite a diverse set of talents and range in a variety of genres across numerous films and television shows. 

After a high-profile split from his first wife Demi Moore in 2000, Bruce found it hard to believe he would ever find love again. However, this all changed when he met model Emma Heming. In 2009, Bruce revealed that it only took one date for him and Heming to fall in love with each other. 

“We went on one date, on the Friday before Emma was getting ready to move back to New York, and then we fell mad crazy in love,” he said. “When you think about where are you going to find that big love of your life, you seldom think it’s someone you already know. You think it’s someone you’re yet to meet.”

And ever since, Bruce and Heming have been inseparable. Bruce and Heming tied the knot in 2009 and went on to welcome two daughters. Heming is also a stepmother to Willis' three daughters from his marriage with Moore. The big blended family gets along well, regularly joining each other for family events or celebrating milestones publicly on social media.

However, tragedy struck when Bruce's family announced he was retiring from acting in March 2022 after being diagnosed with aphasia. As his primary caretaker, Heming has been vocal about the challenges she faces and also took to Instagram to share a message with her fellow care partners, providing encouragement and support.

In May 2023, Heming shared a video of a powerful conversation she had with certified dementia consultant Ty Lewis as they discussed the challenges of caring for a loved one with memory loss. Heming’s husband Bruce was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia in early 2023, and she immediately sought guidance on how to navigate the heavy load of caring for someone with a medical condition to avoid having caregiver burnout.

During the video chat on Instagram, Heming opened up about the tendency for caregivers to “over function” while everyone around “under functions.” She admitted she sometimes struggled to ask for help from others and delegate tasks. 

But Lewis provided valuable advice and suggested that Heming allow members of her community to step in and assist with certain responsibilities. For instance, she could let other people drive Bruce to his doctor's appointments or spend time with him while Heming focused on self-care. 

The mom-of-two also shared the difficulty of handling friends or relatives who felt unsure about interacting with her husband because of his condition. Heming acknowledged that seeing someone they knew in a different state could be “tricky” for people who were unfamiliar with the condition.

In March 2022, Heming and the rest of Bruce's family announced his forced retirement from acting due to aphasia, a language disorder that profoundly affected his ability to communicate effectively. However, in early 2023, Bruce's condition took a turn for the worse and turned into frontotemporal dementia, a degenerative brain disorder that impacts the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain. Some of the symptoms of this condition include personality changes, speech difficulties and motor or muscle impairments, according to the Alzheimer's Association.

The complexities of managing Bruce’s disease underscored the growing challenges of becoming his caregiver. To maintain a positive mindset, Heming discussed her daily practice of starting the day with gratitude and focusing on her goals and priorities. She emphasized the importance of not dwelling on negative thoughts or the challenges they face. She also immersed herself in other activities when she was not caregiving.

"You know, I have my moments. It just depends," Heming said when Lewis asked how was doing. "I'm hanging in there and doing the best that I can," she said. 

Last summer, Hemming posted on social media that her grief over Bruce’s condition "can be paralyzing,” but she's "learning how to live alongside it." However, her constant activity online to update Bruce’s fans and friends about his health was seen as attention-seeking behavior. 

Addressing her critics, Heming said that she has made it her mission to raise awareness about aphasia and frontotemporal dementia in public and she has also pledged to use her platform to shed light on her husband's illness and highlight the invaluable role of caregivers. She expressed her determination to turn her grief, anger and sadness into something positive, per E! News.

“I'm going to take my 5 minutes and I'm gonna turn it into 10 because I'm always going to advocate for my husband,” Heming said.

Heming shares two daughters with Bruce, now 68 years old. They welcomed their first daughter, Mabel, in April 2012 and their second daughter, Evelyn, in May 2014. Heming is also close to Bruce's three adult daughters — Rumer, Scout and Tallulah Willis. Bruce’s older daughters and even his ex-wife Moore have publicly rallied behind Heming.

On Aug. 14, 2023, Heming took to Instagram to post a video in which she addressed other spouses, partners and family members caring for their ailing loved ones. In acknowledging how seeing photos of them was tremendously uplifting for her, she encouraged them to continue taking the time and effort to care for themselves as well. 

“I’m asking care partners to send me photos because I just think it’s so important for us to sort of break up our thinking, which can feel, for me, very much like doom and gloom,” the 45-year-old told her followers. 

She stressed that self-care wasn’t at all tantamount to self-indulgence and while it “looks like I’m out living my best life,” she has 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 said while she may project a picture of a life of ease and comfort, this was far from the truth.

“I don’t want it to be misconstrued that, like, I’m good — because I’m not. I’m not good, but I have to put my best foot forward for the sake of myself and my family. When we are not looking after ourselves, we cannot look after anyone that we love. So it’s really important and like I said, this is a conscious effort. It does not come to me easily, but I am just doing the best that I can always.”

She drove the point home by adding in the caption that “when we are not looking after ourselves, we are no good to the people we love who we want to show up for and take care of.”

The wife of Bruce Willis is committed to supporting caregivers and ensuring that her husband's journey brings global attention to his debilitating disease. What can you say about Emma Heming’s advocacy? Do you know anyone with a similar condition or experience as Willis or his family? Tell them about this story.