Derek Hough, Hayley Erbert share update following Erbert's craniectomy, cranioplasty
Derek Hough and Hayley Erbert are updating fans following Erbert's emergency craniectomy and cranioplasty in December.
In a joint video they shared on Instagram, Erbert started off by saying "it's been quite the journey" and "so much has happened in two months."
"To this day, I still have really good days, and I have really bad days, emotionally and physically sometimes," said Erbert, who appears in the video with shorter hair. "But I'm doing so much better every single day. Truly, there is so much progress every day."
Erbert was hospitalized in December after undergoing an emergency craniectomy while on the Symphony of Dance tour with Hough in Washington, D.C. Hough shared what happened at the time in an Instagram post, saying Erbert "became disoriented and was taken to the hospital."
A craniectomy is a type of brain surgery typically performed in emergency situations, which relieves pressure on the brain. During the procedure, a surgeon removes a piece of skull, which is later replaced during a surgery called a cranioplasty, according to StatPearls, an online library published in the National Library of Medicine.
The dancer underwent a cranioplasty surgery two weeks later, Hough has said. A cranioplasty is "the surgical intervention to repair cranial defects in both cosmetic and functional ways," according to the National Library of Medicine.
In their video, Erbert recalled the moment she woke up after her first surgery.
"I'm so grateful," she said. "There was a moment in the hospital when I had just woken up from my first surgery and Derek's at the bottom of my bed. And he was like, 'There's so many people thinking about you. There's so many people sending love to you.'"
"And I remember just looking at him and just saying, you didn't even have to tell me that. I can feel it," she added. "I genuinely felt that through my body. I felt it in my heart, I felt it in my soul. So thank you for all of your messages, your love, your energy, your light, your prayers."
"It means so much to me and to us as a family," Erbert continued. "I believe that it's what's gotten me through this a little bit faster. And it's what's helped me heal. It's what helped me stay positive throughout this entire experience."
In addition to the new haircut she has, Erbert said she has a new skull and a "new outlook on life."
"Life is so precious," she said. "Just spend time with the ones you love. Hold them close, because you never know what can happen. I'm grateful for all the people that support me through everything."
"I'm just grateful to be alive and to be here to be able to tell my story," she added.
Hough said he's "thankful for everybody" and for Erbert "for being unbelievable and for impressing me each and every day."
