Bruce Willis' wife Emma Heming admitted to feeling a "heaviness in my heart" as she marked their 17th wedding anniversary

In a candid tribute to mark the milestone on Sunday (29.12.24), Emma penned on Instagram alongside a snap of the pair in the sea: "17 years of us.

Anniversaries used to bring excitement - now, if I'm honest, they stir up all the feelings, leaving a heaviness in my heart and a pit in my stomach. I give myself 30 minutes to sit in the 'why him, why us,' to feel the anger and grief."

She added: "Then I shake it off and return to what is. And what is... is unconditional love. I feel blessed to know it, and it's because of him. I'd do it all over again and again in a heartbeat."

Bruce's first wife, Demi Moore - with whom he has Rumer, 36, Scout, 33 and Tallulah, 30 - recently shared that her ex-husband is "in a very stable place" amid his dementia battle.

The 62-year-old actress - who was married to the movie star between 1987 and 2000 - told CNN: "I've shared this before, but I really mean this so sincerely. It's so important for anybody who's dealing with this to really meet them where they're at, and from that place, there is such loving and joy."

Demi admitted it has been "very difficult" to watch Bruce going through his health struggles.

The 'Ghost' star shared: "[It's] not what I would wish upon anyone.

"There is great loss, but there is also great beauty and gifts that can come from it."

Bruce's family shared his dementia diagnosis in early 2023, after he was initially diagnosed with aphasia - a language disorder that affects communication - in 2022.

They said in a statement at the time: "As a family, we wanted to take this opportunity to thank you all for the outpouring of love and compassion for Bruce over the past ten months. Your generosity of spirit has been overwhelming, and we are tremendously grateful for it. For your kindness, and because we know you love Bruce as much as we do, we wanted to give you an update.

"Since we announced Bruce's diagnosis of aphasia in spring 2022, Bruce's condition has progressed and we now have a more specific diagnosis: frontotemporal dementia (known as FTD). Unfortunately, challenges with communication are just one symptom of the disease Bruce faces. While this is painful, it is a relief to finally have a clear diagnosis."