'It's changed my life': Tallulah Willis gets candid about being diagnosed with autism as an adult

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Tallulah Willis opened up for the first time about her diagnosis of autism.

The youngest daughter of Demi Moore and Bruce Willis shared a video of herself as a toddler and her father attending an event on Instagram on Friday, March 15, captioning it, "Tell me your autistic without telling me your autistic," with a crying-laughing emoji.

Tallulah Willis says she received an autism diagnosis as an adult 

The 'Die Hard' actor was seen in the video holding Tallulah while he responded to inquiries on the red carpet. She contented herself playing with his ears and stroking his clean-shaven head with her hand while he was being interviewed.

Social media users posted queries in the post's comment section about whether the actress had ever received an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis as a child.

She said, "Actually this is the first time I’ve ever publicly shared my diagnosis. Found out this summer and it’s changed my life."

Supporting comments poured into Tallulah's comment box, praising her for being open about her diagnosis.

The National Institute of Mental Health defines autism spectrum disorder as "a neurological and developmental disorder that affects how people interact with others, communicate, learn, and behave."

The fact that the symptoms of each individual vary greatly in terms of both kind and intensity is what makes it a "spectrum" disorder, as per TODAY.

She used the occasion to respond to a few more comments made on the post, one of which was from her sister Scout LaRue Willis, who said, "She's stimming." Tallulah subsequently replied, "Dude the ear curl. I wish we had stronger audio."

Self-stimulatory behavior, or stimming as it is sometimes called, is the repetitive gestures and sounds a person performs to help control their emotions, as per the Cleveland Clinic. It is frequently, though not invariably, connected to autism spectrum disorder.

"What an amazing memory of you and your dad. Neurospicy folx make the world a better place," commented one more. With a heart-eyes emoji, Tallulah answered, "neurospicy," tagging her sister Rumer Willis.

Tallulah Willis' past mental health battles

Tallulah previously talked about her battle with body dysmorphia and how it contributed to her anorexia and other mental health issues in a heartfelt personal essay for the Vogue 2023 issue.

She wrote, "For the last four years, I have suffered from anorexia nervosa, which I’ve been reluctant to talk about because, after getting sober at age 20, restricting food has felt like the last vice that I got to hold on to." 

At the age of 25, Tallulah was sent to a residential treatment center to address her eating problem as well as her depression, which she said had persisted since childhood.

"It was a largely therapeutic experience; for the first time, I grieved the 15-year-old misfit me, the ugly duckling. I was also diagnosed with ADHD and started on stimulant medication, which was transformative," noted 'The Whole Ten Yards' actress. 

Her family intervened and brought her to the Texas rehabilitation facility Driftwood Recovery. She did not anticipate receiving a second diagnosis, though. The actor discovered she had borderline personality disorder while at Driftwood.

The National Institute of Mental Health states that borderline personality disorder or BPD is a mental condition that significantly impairs a person's ability to control their emotions.

Tallulah admitted that concentrating on her healing is a process and that she must "resist the temptation" and "urge myself to move on" each time she sees items from her worst-of-health closet.

She further revealed that she has been concentrating on mending her ties with her family, particularly with her father Bruce ever since he was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia. 

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.