ITV Share Add as a preferred source on Google By Carena Crawford 11 Feb 2026, 12:02 By Carena Crawford 11 Feb 2026, 12:02 What is actually wrong with Bear? Emmerdale fans demand answers as he continues to break down Bear has been struggling for long before he was held captive Bear Wolf Ray Walters What's wrong with Bear? Share Add as a preferred source on Google By Carena Crawford 11 Feb 2026, 12:02 By Carena Crawford 11 Feb 2026, 12:02 As Paddy finally acknowledges his dad needs professional help in Emmerdale tonight, fans are asking all over again what exactly is wrong with Bear Wolf? Bear has been suffering for quite some time – well before he was taken and held captive by Ray Walters. But that seems to have been forgotten about entirely. Is counselling really going to help? Or does Bear need more than that? Bear was in a state long before he left (Credit: ITV) Something has been wrong with Bear for a while in Emmerdale It was back in May 2025 that Bear Wolf had begun acting oddly. He was taking everything personally, believed his family no longer wanted him and was violently lashing out. At the time Emmerdale show boss Laura Shaw teased something big was coming for Bear. article continues below Read all the latest spoilers “He’s going off screen for a little while,” she said. “He’ll go missing and when he comes back what you’ll see is a very different Bear in a very different situation.” After another fight with Paddy and saying some horrible things, Bear left Emmerdale in July saying he was going to stay with a friend. Only Bear never arrived. It was November when we found out Bear had in fact been living with Ray Walters, being held as a slave and made to work on the farm. But Bear had been brainwashed into believing Ray was taking care of him and was a good man. Bear kiled Ray but is struggling to cope (Credit: ITV) Bear freed but still not okay In January we thought Bear was dead. Ray’s evil mum had ordered Bear killed and told Ray it had happened slowly and painfully. We saw Bear’s feet, but never actually saw his body. And during flashback week as Ray’s killer was unveiled we discovered Bear wasn’t dead at all. In fact, he had escaped to come and find his son, Paddy. Only what he found was Ray about to kill Paddy with a hammer. So he stepped in and began strangling Ray. As Bear said he just wanted it to stop, Ray became lifeless. Bear had accidentally killed him. Paddy and Dylan did not want Bear to go down for murder after all he’d been through so covered up the killing. They then locked Bear up and pretended he was still missing. Bear got out and so Paddy has since been keeping a watchful eye on him, not allowing any visitors, cutting police interviews short and not letting him get any professional help. Tonight (Wednesday February 11) Bear has another breakdown and Paddy finally acknowledges counselling is the only way to help him deal with his trauma. However fans have been debated whether counselling is actually the only thing Bear needs. What about an actual diagnosis for a start? Bear is now breaking down a lot (Credit: ITV) What’s wrong with Bear in Emmerdale? Writing on social media, viewers have begun to wonder whether a diagnosis of what triggered the whole episode in the first place is to come. As well as the trauma Bear has gone through, whatever made him have a breakdown last year needs to be addressed too. One wrote: “Is Bear ever going to get a diagnosis on his state of mind/possible dementia/CTE? Just seems like he should have had a thorough physical by now.” Last year fans worried Bear had CTE (Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy), a condition which can be a result of repeated traumatic brain injuries, common in those who sustain injuries from sports. As a former wrestler, Bear would’ve had plenty of knocks to the head over the years which could have triggered the condition. Other suggestions included dementia or depression. Another agreed: “he wasn’t right before he went missing. He needs to see Liam or Manpreet.” Someone else wasn’t quite so understanding: “How much longer have we got to endure this regurgitated Bear? Wouldn’t be so bad if we actually knew how, and where he lost his brain cells.” “What’s actually wrong with Bear?” queried another. “I thought it was the meds Ray was giving him but has he got dementia or something?” So will Emmerdale give us an explanation for this? Let’s hope so because Bear needs help more than ever right now. Timeline of Bear Wolf's breakdown We know Bear has had some sort of breakdown in Emmerdale, but what could it be related to? Here's everything that has happened to him in the last year... May 2025: Laura Shaw annouces big Bear storyline in Emmerdale Emmerdale producer Laura Shaw teases future storylines, one involving Bear. "He's going off screen for a little while," she said. "He'll go missing and when he comes back what you'll see is a very different Bear in a very different situation." Laura added: "We're all going to be watching going: 'what the hell has happened here?'" Later that month, Bear's strange behaviour began. June 2025: Bear's behaviour worsens Bear begins acting very strangely. He thinks Paddy and Mandy are trying to get rid of him and want him out. Paddy buys him an old motorcycle to do up in a bid to cheer him up. However the stress of getting the vehicle to work causes Bear to violently lash out at Kammy. Bear then went missing for the first time. Paddy suspected his dad had dementia and tried to test him in secret. But Bear realised what they were doing and stormed out. June 30 2025: Bear hits out at Paddy in Emmerdale Paddy is attacked by Celia Daniels' dog and Bear rescues him. Paddy is rushed in for emergency surgery and is grateful for Bear’s help. But suddenly Bear erupts and uses the attack as an opportunity to say some horrible thing about his son leaving Mandy appalled. July 1 2025: Exit Paddy confronted Celia over the dog attack, but she intimidated him and made him feel even worse. He blamed Bear and after another huge row, Paddy threw Bear out. Bear called his friend Gnasher for a place to stay, but Gnasher said no. However Bear lied to Mandy and Paddy that he was going to Gnasher's and left the village. Later that month was the last time we saw Bear - living in his car, not far from Emmerdale. November 2025: Paddy realises Bear is missing in Emmerdale It took four months for Paddy to realise Bear never went to Gnashers. He had no idea where he was, but the police were unable to help. In a special standalone episode we saw Bear had been taken in by Ray Walters and was living as a slave on his farm. Bear was being drugged to keep in line and had come to depend on Ray and believe they were friends. January 2026 - Bear finally freed In a bid to hurt Ray and keep him in line, cruel Celia told Ray Bear was dead. We saw Bear's feet as Ray sobbed over his body. However after Ray killed Celia, a week of flashbacks to Ray's own death saw Bear was no actually dead. In fact he reappeared just as Ray was about to kill Paddy. Bear grabbed Ray and shouted he just wanted it to stop before strangling him to death. Read more: Who’s leaving Emmerdale? All the cast exits, arrivals and returns Share Add as a preferred source on Google Good to Know Share Add as a preferred source on Google By Carena Crawford 11 Feb 2026, 12:02 By Carena Crawford 11 Feb 2026, 12:02 Next Story
