Bruce Willis' wife Emma Heming Willis has revealed she had "no hope" after his dementia diagnosis
The entrepreneur and author reflected on her action star husband's early experience of frontotemporal dementia in a candid new interview.
"We received a diagnosis and (were) sent away with no hope, no guidance, no nothing, and I really had to figure out how to put resources into place," Emma, 46, told People magazine.
"And it was a lot of searching the Internet, trying to figure things out."
While Emma initially launched into deep-diving Bruce's disease and seeking experts who could give her as much information as possible, she quickly realised she needed to remember to look after herself, as well.
"I think that was my downfall. I thought that that's what I was supposed to do," the mother-of-two recalled.
"What I've learned in all of this is that the most important person is the caregiver. We have to care for the caregiver, because when we care for ourselves, we can then show up for the person that we love."
Finally, Emma - who shares daughters Mabel Ray Willis, 13, and Evelyn Penn Willis, 11 with Bruce - concluded, "because the ecosystem of care doesn't work unless the caregiver is cared for."