Hollywood icon Bruce Willis has retired from acting after being diagnosed with aphasia, a severe communication disorder. The 67-year-old ‘Die Hard’ star announced that he was immediately retiring from acting, which has always meant so much to him! OK Magazine revealed a year earlier that the actor may be suffering from dementia. Sources confirmed to the magazine that the actor had been struggling with amnesia for a long time.
Even as his condition has deteriorated to a state of potentially no recovery, Bruce Willis’ fam took to socials to announce his retirement. Rumer Willis, the eldest of Bruce and Demi Moore’s daughters, shared a heartbreaking post on Insta thanking fans and friends for their sympathy and support.
Hollywood has long suspected Bruce’s fading memory, as quite a few productions have cut his script length and monologues in recent years. Working for low-budget ‘White Elephant’ director Jesse V Johnson was shocked by Bruce’s condition. They first worked together when Bruce was a stuntman. He was ‘not the Bruce I remember anymore’, Jesse noticed Unfortunately. His roles were filmed quickly, even when he yelled at the crew, “I know why you’re here, but why am I here!”
There was an outpouring of support for the legendary actor on the socials from colleagues, friends and fans alike.
What is aphasia?
Aphasia is a condition that severely impairs the affected person’s ability to converse and even understand language. The disease usually affects the left lobe of the brain, the language processing unit. It paralyzes one’s ability to communicate as the person struggles to find the right word to express. In severe cases, those affected may even lose the meaning of words and language.
Causes and Complications of Aphasia
Some of the most common causes of aphasia are tumors, head injury, stroke, infection in the brain etc. And of course dementia also causes aphasia. In addition to permanent and degenerative aphasia, migraines and seizures can sometimes cause episodes of temporary aphasia. Patients with TIA (Transient Ischemic Attack) are prone to the disease.
Aphasia can seriously affect daily activities. It also affects professions and relationships (sigh!). It can lead to severe depression and melancholy and in milder cases it can lead to eternal shame.
Patterns of aphasia
Anomic aphasia -The person struggles to find the right word to speak or write.
Expressive aphasia -The person knows what to say, but cannot express it.
Primary progressive aphasia – In primary progressive aphasia, the person gradually loses the ability to speak, read and write.
Global aphasia – Most severe form of aphasia in which the person completely loses the ability to express themselves in speech or writing.
Image: aphasia.org
Symptoms
Common symptoms include:
- Difficulty speaking
- Inability to understand what others are communicating (especially in public)
- Speak in fairly short sentences or incoherent sentences
- Using vague words or saying wrong words while communicating
Cover image: sourced