Bruce Willis’ wife Emma Heming Willis is feeling an array of emotions on the actor’s first birthday since revealing his frontotemporal dementia diagnosis.
The Die Hard icon turned 68 on Sunday, and his wife shared how it was affecting her on her Instagram Stories.
“Today is my husband’s birthday. I have started the morning by crying as you can see by my swollen eyes and snotty nose,” she began. “I just think it’s important that you see all sides of this.”
“I always get this message or people always tell me, ‘Oh, you’re so strong. I don’t know how you do it.’ I’m not given a choice,” Emma, 44, explained. “I wish I was, but I’m also raising two kids in this.”
“Sometimes in our lives, we have to put our big girl panties on and get to it. And that’s what I’m doing,” she continued. “But I do have times of sadness, every day, grief every day, and I’m really feeling it today on his birthday.”
“I worked on this [forthcoming] reel that I’m posting for my husband’s birthday. I don’t know why I do that to myself because the videos are like a knife in my heart,” Emma shared.
“But as much as I do it for myself I do it for you because I know how much you love my husband,” she told fans before pausing to remind herself, “Don’t cry, Emma.”
She concluded the video by saying, “But it means so much to me, so thank you.”
The birthday comes weeks after Hemming Willis took to Instagram to ask paparazzi to “keep their space” from her husband as he goes out with friends or family, explaining that it is already “stressful” to go out into the world and to navigate them safely.
She added that there still needs to be a lot of “education” about how to treat people with dementia.
“I know this is your job, but maybe just keep your space,” she said in the video. “Please don’t be yelling at my husband, asking how he’s doing, whatever. The woo-hooing and the yippee-ki-yay’s — just don’t do it. Give him the space. Allow for our family or whoever’s with him that day to be able to get him from Point A to Point B safely. That’s my PSA.”
Bruce’s milestone event is not the only happy occasion in the family — his eldest daughter, Rumer Willis celebrated her baby shower on March 11 surrounded by family and friends.
The pregnant House Bunny actress and boyfriend Derek Richard Thomas performed together at the intimate event and posed together for pictures with the entire Willis clan, including all four of Rumer’s sisters his ex-wife Demi Moore and Emma. Bruce was not in photos shared from the event.
Bruce shares Rumer, 34, Scout Willis, 31, and Tallulah Willis, 29 with Moore. With Emma, he shares Mabel, 10, and Evelyn, 8.
When the family revealed the actor’s FTD diagnosis last month, they said in a group statement, “Bruce has always found joy in life — and has helped everyone he knows to do the same. It has meant the world to see that sense of care echoed back to him and to all of us. We have been so moved by the love you have all shared for our dear husband, father, and friend during this difficult time.”
“Your continued compassion, understanding, and respect will enable us to help Bruce live as full a life as possible,” they concluded.