Trending badgeTrendingPosted 44 minutes agoSubscribe to BuzzFeed Daily NewsletterCaret DownEric Dane's Wife, Rebecca Gayheart, Just Explained Why She Called Off Their Divorce Amid His ALS Diagnosis - And It's Genuinely AdmirableRebecca's comments come after Eric sparked confusion by stepping out with another woman in June.by Stephanie SoteriouBuzzFeed StaffFacebookPinterestLink Back in April, Grey's Anatomy and Euphoria star Eric Dane revealed that he had been diagnosed with ALS, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. This is also known as motor neurone disease, and impacts nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, causing patients to gradually lose the ability to walk, speak, eat, and breathe independently - although their mental state remains unchanged. Gilbert Flores / Getty Images There is currently no cure for ALS, and most people living with it are expected to live for three to five years after their diagnosis. Approximately 1 in 10 patients survive for 10 years or more. Speaking to Diane Sawyer for Good Morning America in June, 53-year-old Eric said that his symptoms began about a year and a half earlier, when he noticed weakness in his right hand. He added at the time: "My left side is functioning, my right side has completely stopped working... I feel like maybe a couple more months, and I won't have my left hand either. It's sobering." ABC / Via youtube.com Eric, who used to be a competitive swimmer and water polo star, also recalled a recent experience during a boat trip with his youngest daughter. The star shares 15-year-old Billie Beatrice and 13-year-old Georgia Geraldine with his wife, Rebecca Gayheart. He told Diane: "When I jumped in the ocean that day and realized I couldn't swim [or] generate enough power to get myself back to the boat, I thought: 'Oh, God.' And then I realized in that moment: I'm not safe in the water anymore." Gilbert Flores / Getty Images "She dragged me back in the boat," Eric said of his daughter, recalling that he was "breaking down in tears" at the time. "I made sure she got back in the water with her friend and continued on with the snorkelling with the guide. But I was just heartbroken." Eric then shared his anger at the thought of his daughters potentially losing him at a "very young age," and said that he wants to prioritize spending as much time as possible with his family. Discussing Rebecca, who he married in 2004, specifically, Eric said: "I talk to her every day. We have managed to become better friends and better parents. And she is probably my biggest champion, my most stalwart supporter, and I lean on her." Jason Laveris / Getty Images And with that in mind, people were confused when Eric stepped out with filmmaker Janell Shirtcliff just a few days after the interview. Eric and Janell posed hand-in-hand on the red carpet at the premiere of his show Countdown, and a source told Entertainment Tonight that same day that the couple had been "in an on-and-off relationship" for more than three years. Valerie Macon / Getty Images So, here's the context: After marrying in 2004 and welcoming two children together, Rebecca filed for divorce from Eric in 2018, but the divorce proceedings never moved forward. Then, in March of this year - just one month before Eric publicly shared his ALS diagnosis - Rebecca requested to dismiss her divorce filing. During an interview with E! shortly afterwards, Rebecca confirmed that she and Eric are still married and "the best of friends." Mike Fanous / Getty Images "We are really close. We are great coparents. We really figured out the formula to staying a family, and I think our kids are benefiting greatly from it, and we are as well," she explained at the time. "I think it's important to not look at a relationship that ends as a failure. It's just a season. It wasn't a failure. It was a huge success. We were married for, I mean, we are still married, but together for 15 years, and we had two beautiful kids, so I think that's a successful relationship, and that's how we look at it." Jb Lacroix / Getty Images And now, Rebecca has opened up some more about her and Eric's "super complicated" relationship as she shared why she decided to call off the divorce - and how it all boils down to prioritizing their daughters. During an appearance on the Broad Ideas podcast, Rebecca said: "I am definitely trying to show [my daughters] that we show up for people no matter what. And he is our family, he is your father. We show up, and we try to do it with some dignity and some grace and just get through it, and that we will get through it the best we can. I mean, it's super complicated for me." Variety / Getty Images "We've been separated for eight years," Rebecca then confirmed. "The kids live with me 100 per cent of the time. There's been lots of just stuff, other stuff, but I try to stay optimistic about it all. I'm trying to learn from it and [be a] role model for them [for] how to go through something like this, which is really hard." Rich Polk