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Cinemablend
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Riley Utley

‘A Profound Reminder Of How Fragile Life Can Be’: DWTS’ Derek Hough Updates Fans On Wife’s Recovery And Upcoming Surgery

A screenshot of Derek Hough and Hayley Erbert smiling into the camera on their YouTube channel.

Not long after the first winner of the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy was named and amid Derek Hough’s A Symphony Of Dance Tour, his wife and dance partner, Hayley Erbert had to have emergency surgery due to a cranial hematoma caused by a burst blood vessel. This life-threatening medical scare has resulted in the couple pausing their tour as Erbert recovers. Now, her husband has shared an update about her journey and her upcoming procedure, noting that this experience has been “a profound reminder of how fragile life can be.” 

While this medical scare was truly terrifying, Hayley Erbert is on the road to recovery, as her husband took to Instagram to provide an update and post a video of them walking together in Washington D.C.

Writing that this time has been full of “uncertainty and fear,” Derek Hough gave a detailed update about his partner and how she’s doing. He also showed their gratitude for the “support and medical care” she has received during this difficult time. The Dancing with the Stars judge further explained this point:

Thank you for the incredible support and medical care she has received. It’s been a profound reminder of how fragile life can be and how quickly things can change. But, it has also shown us the incredible strength and resilience that lies within us and the power of having a supportive community around us.

Hough specifically noted the support and messages they’ve received over the last few weeks, writing:

We cannot express enough gratitude to each of you for your unwavering support, messages, prayers and undeniable loving energy we have both felt during this time.

Similar to the love Hough and Erbert received when they got married, following the medical scare, the couple received support from Candace Cameron Bure, DWTS pro Koko Iwasaki and more. Alfonso Ribeiro asked for prayers to be sent to Erbert as well, saying the couple “mean everything to me and our family.” The Dancing with the Stars host works closely with both Derek and Julianne Hough on the competition show, and as you can see by the support from him and other folks involved with the ABC program, they care deeply about the couple and Erbert’s recovery. 

In the post, the DWTS pro-turned-judge noted that “Hayley is doing well.” He explained that her recovery has been “nothing short of a miracle,” and that she had another surgery on the way to “insert a skull implant.” Following Erbert’s craniectomy, this second surgery will help her skull get back to “its natural shape” and protect her. That procedure is underway, as the dancer posted this to his Instagram stories yesterday:

(Image credit: Derek Hough's Instagram Stories)

At the time of this writing, we don’t know how the surgery went. However, Derek Hough said in his post that he and his wife are looking forward “to cherishing these moments with a deeper appreciation for life and the people in it.” 

As this situation develops, we’ll be sure to keep you posted. In the meantime, as we all hope for Erbert’s full recovery, you can stream the season of Dancing with the Stars that just wrapped on the 2023 TV schedule, which Hough judged, with a Disney+ subscription

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