Michael J. Fox reveals ‘tough’ toll his Parkinson’s battle has on his family

Michael J. Fox has candidly discussed how his Parkinson’s battle has impacted his four children in a heartbreaking new Aussie interview.

Michael J. Fox has opened up about the devastating impact his Parkinson’s disease has had on his family in a heartbreaking appearance on Channel 7’s Sunrise this morning.

Speaking to promote his new memoir, No Time Like the Future: An Optimist Considers Mortality, the 59-year-old actor, who suffers from uncontrollable physical tremors and severe speech difficulties, described his condition as “tough” on his family.

Michael J. Fox appeared on Sunrise this morning to discuss his new memoir. Picture: Channel 7

“It’s tough to see people feel like they have to share your experience, and they can’t share your experience,” he said.

“They understand 98 per cent of your experience and they can help you and be with you, but they can’t share it, it’s all yours.”

Elsewhere in the interview, he said of his family’s support: “With Parkinson’s patients, the hardest reaction is acceptance, comprehending why should I accept this, or surrender to it.

“My wife is great because she knows me so well.

“She’s very funny and my son and my daughters are all funny - even my father was funny.”

It comes after The New York Times published excerpts of Fox’s book in which he described how his acting career has been affected by his Parkinson’s in recent years.

RELATED: Michael J. Fox’s secret health battle

Fox was first diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 1991 at the age of 29. Picture: AFP

Fox writes that “not being able to speak reliably is a game-breaker for an actor,” the Times reports.

“Absent a chemical intervention, Parkinson’s will render me frozen, immobile, stone-faced, and mute – entirely at the mercy of my environment,” the star writes.

“For someone for whom motion equals emotion, vibrance and relevance, it’s a lesson in humility.”

RELATED: Worst moment of star’s life

Michael J. Fox with Christopher Lloyd in from Back To The Future. Fox was aged 24 at the time.

Fox’s admission has left fans questioning if he has decided to step back from acting for good. A spokesperson confirmed in a statement to Fox News on Saturday that Fox “is not actively looking for work”.

However, the spokesperson added: “But if something great comes along and it works for him, he would consider it.”

The actor is best known for his role as Marty McFly in the Back To The Future franchise, but he also became a household name thanks to the sitcom Family Ties.

Political comedy Spin City and guest roles in The Good Wife have kept him in the spotlight since then.

Most recently, he appeared in two episodes of Good Wife spin-off The Good Fight, an episode of Corner Gas Animated and the Netflix film See You Yesterday.

The last project Fox has listed on the site is a short, titled The Beast, Heroes Of The Wildfire, which is said to be currently filming.

RELATED: Back To The Future stars reunite

Michael J. Fox at the Back To The Future reunion in 2015. Picture: Getty

Fox, who semi-retired as his disease progressively got worse, has nabbed four Golden Globes and five Emmys, along with several more nominations.

The star also recently opened up about his struggles with acting in an interview with People magazine.

“My short-term memory is shot,” he said.

In the past, the Back To The Future star said: “I always had a real proficiency for lines and memorisation.”

Michael J. Fox and wife Tracy Pollan, 2007. Picture: Getty Images

“And I had some extreme situations where the last couple of jobs I did were actually really word-heavy parts. I struggled during both of them,” he said.

Fox added: “So the last couple of years have been trickier than most.”

Despite his difficulties with Parkinson’s, Fox’s wife and former Family Ties co-star Tracy Pollan has been by his side every step of the way.

“The book is a love letter to Tracy,” Fox told the Times.

“She really got me through everything.”

This article originally appeared on Fox News and was reproduced here with permission