Oprah and Bruce Willis' Wife Emma on Finding Strength, Hope & Yourself in Caregiving

Oprah September 2, 2025
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The Oprah Podcast is home to all-new conversations featuring Oprah Winfrey and today’s foremost thought leaders, global newsmakers, best-selling authors, visionaries and cultural changemakers. Exploring timely themes, including happiness, resilience, consciousness and connection, the weekly series aims to help listeners on their journey to lead their best life. Oprah talks to people about what matters most to them in this moment. She also features conversations with authors chosen for The Oprah Book Club. Join the community! Subscribe now.

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Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/@Oprah?sub_confirmation=1 Emma Heming Willis is a former model and now entrepreneur and author who joins The Oprah Podcast to discuss her new book “The Unexpected Journey: Finding Hope and Purpose on the Caregiving Path.” It’s the book Emma says she wishes she had when she and her husband, legendary actor Bruce Willis, faced his frontotemporal dementia diagnosis. Emma shares with Oprah why “The Unexpected Journey” is a guide to navigating the complicated, heartbreaking, and transformative experience that is caregiving. When Bruce Willis was diagnosed in 2022, the couple was given a pamphlet and told to check back in a few months. With no hope or direction, Emma walked out of the doctor’s office frozen with fear, confusion and a sense that her world had just fallen apart. How would she care for her husband while parenting their young daughters and protecting her family’s privacy? Emma interviewed the world’s top dementia and caregiving experts to share their expertise in the book. Oprah and Emma are also joined by two women who have been through the caregiving process – they share their challenges and learnings. Buy the book! https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/768943/the-unexpected-journey-by-emma-heming-willis/ https://www.amazon.com/Unexpected-Journey-Strength-Yourself-Caregiving/dp/0593833945 00:00:00 - Welcome Emma Heming Willis, author of The Unexpected Journey 00:03:08 - Emma’s love story with Bruce Willis 00:06:40 - Life before his diagnosis 00:09:25 - First signs of change 00:14:20 - From symptoms to diagnosis 00:15:26 - Understanding frontotemporal dementia 00:18:20 - How she describes Bruce’s condition 00:20:00 - Caregiver health risks 00:22:30 - Advice to help a caregiver 00:23:28 - Emma’s wakeup call 00:24:50 - Asking for help 00:32:55 - Demi Moore on Emma and Bruce Willis 00:43:45 - Coping with losing a partner before they’re gone 00:52:36 - Reconciling guilt while moving forward 01:01:44 - Getting caregiving support 01:04:00 - Raising awareness for early diagnosis 01:05:10 - Bruce Willis’ legacy https://maketimewellness.com/?srsltid=AfmBOorTxnB-LpkrVXckskht9lBXlfgm8nt1vRjSCqJaQlCbuS4mco1Q www.strawberry.me/oprahpodcast Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/@Oprah Follow Oprah Winfrey on Social: https://www.instagram.com/oprahpodcast/ https://www.instagram.com/oprah/ https://www.facebook.com/oprahwinfrey/ Listen to the full podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/0tEVrfNp92a7lbjDe6GMLI https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-oprah-podcast/id1782960381

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