Emma Heming says it’s ‘hard to know’ if Bruce Willis is aware of his dementia in tearful interview

nypost.com:

told TODAY’s Hoda Kotb. “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 Willis was joined by CEO of the Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration, Susan Dickinson, during the appearance.

According to Heming Willis, it is unclear if her ailing husband is actually aware of what is going on regarding his condition. “It’s hard to know,” she said, holding back tears.According to Dickinson, brain disease affects everyone differently.

Some people manage to retain a semblance of self-awareness while others lose it imminently. “What we know is, obviously the disease can start in the frontal or the temporal lobes,” explained Dickinson. “And one of the things that the frontal lobe controls is self-insight.”“So we really don’t know some people that’s the first thing they lose is any understanding that they themselves have changed,” she continued. “And other people retain that for a long time.”Kotb, 59, then asked how Heming Willis, who has two small children with the “Pulp Fiction” star, and her family are coping with the diagnosis. “We’re a very honest and open household,” she said. “And you know, the most important thing was to be able for us to say what the disease was, explain what it is because when you know what the disease is, from a medical standpoint, it sort of all makes sense.” She added: “So it was important that we let them know what it is because, you know, I don’t want there to be any stigma or shame attached to their dad’s diagnosis or for any form of dementia.” The couple are parents to daughters Mabel, 11, and Evelyn, 8.