7 celebrities who have dealt with aphasia in inspiring ways

Willis himself has not made any public statements about his diagnosis, but a statement shared by his family on Instagram on March 30 announced that the actor would be stepping back from his acting career.

"We wanted to share that our beloved Bruce has been experiencing some health issues and has recently been diagnosed with aphasia, which is impacting his cognitive abilities," Rumer Willis, his eldest daughter with Demi Moore, said in a post on her account. "As a result of this and with much consideration Bruce is stepping away from the career that has meant so much to him."

"As Bruce always says, 'Live it up' and together we plan to do just that," the statement concluded.

The family did not mention a stroke or brain injury as a precursor to Willis' diagnosis, so it's possible the actor may be experiencing primary progressive aphasia, a neurodegenerative condition that can affect language and cognition, Brooke Lang, a speech pathologist, told Insider.

Shortly after finishing filming season one of "Game of Thrones," Clarke had an aneurysm while working out with her trainer. 

"My trainer had me get into the plank position, and I immediately felt as though an elastic band was squeezing my brain. I tried to ignore the pain and push through it, but I just couldn't," she wrote in an essay for The New Yorker, published in 2019. "At some level, I knew what was happening: my brain was damaged."

After Clarke was sent for an MRI, she was told she had suffered a subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), a life-threatening type of stroke caused by bleeding into the space surrounding the brain.

After having surgery to seal off the aneurysm, Clarke fearfully realized her language was impaired.

"One night, after I'd passed that crucial mark, a nurse woke me and, as part of a series of cognitive exercises, she said, 'What's your name?' My full name is Emilia Isobel Euphemia Rose Clarke. But now I couldn't remember it," the actress wrote. "Instead, nonsense words tumbled out of my mouth and I went into a blind panic. I'd never experienced fear like that—a sense of doom closing in. I could see my life ahead, and it wasn't worth living. I am an actor; I need to remember my lines. Now I couldn't recall my name."

She returned to the ICU and the aphasia passed after about a week.

"I was able to speak," she wrote. "I knew my name—all five bits. But I was also aware that there were people in the beds around me who didn't make it out of the I.C.U. I was continually reminded of just how fortunate I was."

She went on to launch Same You, a charity that helps survivors of stroke and brain injury.

After suffering a stroke in 2001, the "Basic Instinct" actress was rushed to hospital. A cerebral hemorrhage lasted nine days, impairing Stone's ability to walk and speak. However, she was able to recover from her aphasia and regain her ability to speak and read clearly.

"It took two years for my body just to absorb all the internal bleeding I had," Stone told Harper's Bazaar in 2015. "It almost feels like my entire DNA changed. My brain isn't sitting where it used to, my body type changed, and even my food allergies are different."

"I became more emotionally intelligent," Stone continued. "I chose to work very hard to open up other parts of my mind. Now I'm stronger. And I can be abrasively direct. That scares people, but I think that's not my problem. It's like, I have brain damage; you'll just have to deal with it."

While Travis still rarely performs, he has made strides to regain his speech after a life-threatening stroke temporarily took away his ability to speak clearly and walk without the use of a cane. 

"The memory is as sharp as it ever was," his wife, Mary Davis Travis, told People in 2017. "Everything's up there, it's just the aphasia [loss of speech] and getting it out that's the frustrating part."

In his 2019 memoir, "Forever and Ever, Amen: A Memoir of Music, Faith, and Braving the Storms of Life," Travis opened up about his stroke and subsequent aphasia.

"I wanted to shout as loudly as I had ever bellowed, yet no words formed, no sound came out of my mouth. But a single tear trickled from my eye and down my face as I mustered every ounce of energy I had. I squeezed Mary's hand. She knew," he wrote. "We both knew that my life was in God's hands. Like me, Mary believed that God had plans for my life and that our faith would get us through. We just weren't quite sure how."

"But I had braved numerous storms in my life and had frequently faced overwhelming odds, times when others had advised me to give up," he continued. "I hadn't quit then—and I wasn't about to quit now."

In 2016, Travis and his wife performed "Amazing Grace" at the Hall of Fame induction ceremony. It has been reported by researchers that those struggling with severe aphasia may find it easier to sing lyrics than speak the same words.

In 2021, Travis released his first song since his stroke in collaboration with Drew Parker, titled, "There's a New Kid in Town."

After a shooting at a constituent meeting that left Giffords critically injured and six people dead, she has become an advocate for curbing gun violence.

"I've known the darkest of days. Days of pain and uncertain recovery. Confronted by despair, I've summoned hope. Confronted by paralysis and aphasia, I responded with grit and determination," Giffords said in a speech at the 2020 Democratic National Convention.

"I put one foot in front of the other. I found one word, and then I found another. My recovery is a daily fight, but fighting makes me stronger. Words once came easily, but today I struggle to speak. But I have not lost my voice. America needs all of us to speak out, even when you have to fight to find the words."

Known for his annual New Year's Eve countdown celebration, Clark continued to host the event for years even after having a stroke in December 2004. The stroke left the "American Bandstand" host paralyzed on one side of his body and his speech impaired, but he returned to host "New Year's Rockin' Eve" in 2005.

"Last year I had a stroke," he said on the broadcast, according to People. "It left me in bad shape. I had to teach myself how to walk and talk again. It's been a long, hard fight. My speech is not perfect but I'm getting there."

He passed away in 2012 after a heart attack. 

While aphasia is most commonly linked to a stroke or brain injury, it can also happen as a result of a disorder that affects the brain, such as Alzheimer's disease.

Campbell lost his ability to speak in the later stages of his fight with the disease, his wife of 35 years, Kim Campbell, said a few months before his death in 2017.

"He has complete aphasia; he doesn't understand language and he can't communicate verbally," Kim Campbell told "Access Hollywood Live," according to the Toronto Sun. "But he understands the universal language of love and smiles and kisses and hugs... And he enjoys dessert."

Glen Campbell was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 2011 and continued touring until 2014, after which point he was placed in a long-term care facility close to his home in Nashville, Tennessee.