Demi Moore Has Compassion for Ex Bruce Willis’ Wife Emma Heming

Demi Moore is commending Bruce Willis‘ wife, Emma Heming Willis, for how she has approached the action star’s mental decline due to dementia in recent years.

On Tuesday, Sept. 2, Moore, 62, appeared on an episode of The Oprah Podcast with host Oprah Winfrey to speak to her perspective on her ex-husband‘s experience with frontotemporal dementia (FTD) as part of a larger interview with Emma, 49, about her book The Unexpected Journey: Finding Hope and Purpose on the Caregiving Path.

“There is no road map for how to deal with this,” Moore said, when Winfrey, 71, asked about Moore’s experience watching Emma become Willis’ caregiver in recent years. (The Willis family revealed that Bruce, now 70, was retiring from acting after he was diagnosed with aphasia back in 2022. Emma shared that Bruce was diagnosed with FTD in 2023.)

“Obviously, being the ex wife, even though our family is very connected, is an interesting position,” The Substance star said. “So much fell on Emma to really figure this whole thing out, and the most beautiful thing, and she talks about this in the book, was recognizing the importance for caregivers that they have to take care of themselves. And if they don’t put that time into making sure that they’re okay, that they then can’t show up for anyone else.”

“I have so much compassion for Emma in this, being a young woman. There’s no way that anybody could have anticipated where this was going to go,” Moore added of Emma, who married Bruce in 2009. (Moore and the Die Hard star split in 1998 and finalized their divorce in 2000.) “And I really think she’s done a masterful job. She has been so dedicated to forging the right path. She’s had equal amounts of fear and strength and courage in navigating this. I think that this book is gonna really be very helpful for a lot of people who are walking through this.”

Moore and Bruce have remained close in the decades since their divorce; the couple share adult daughters Rumer, 37, Scout, 34, and Tallulah, 31. Bruce and Emma also share two daughters: Mabel Ray, 13, and Evelyn Penn, 11.

During Moore’s brief interview with Winfrey, the Ghost star also said that it has been “difficult” for her to watch her ex-husband’s decline in recent years. “It’s hard to see somebody who was so, you know, vibrant and strong and so directed shift into this other parts of themself,” Moore said. “But, my particular perspective is — one, I really always say it’s so important just to meet them where they’re at. Don’t have an expectation of them needing to be who they were or who you want them to be. And when you do that, I find that there is an incredible sweetness and something that’s soft and tender and loving.”

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Moore also spoke to a need to simply be “present” when it comes to matters involving Bruce. “If you replay where it was and what you’ve lost, it only creates anxiety and and grief,” she added. “And so when you stay present, there is so much, and there’s still so much of him there. And it may not always be verbal, but it is beautiful, given the givens.”

When Winfrey finished playing Moore’s portion of their conversation for Emma, she called Moore’s words “beautiful.” Emma then added, “But she’s right; there is beauty there. Right? As hard as it is to lose someone that we love, we are able to tap into what is.”

The Unexpected Journey releases Sept. 9.