Hayley Erbert, dancer and wife of “Dancing With the Stars” judge Derek Hough, is undergoing a second surgery on Wednesday after her sudden hospitalization earlier this month due to a brain bleed.
“She is going in for surgery this morning to replace a large portion of her skull that was removed during her craniectomy,” Hough said in a statement posted in his Instagram stories early Wednesday morning. “Please keep her in your prayers as I believe the collective energy helped her through these past few weeks.”
After a Dec. 5 dance performance in Oxon Hill, Md., near Washington, D.C., Erbert was rushed to a hospital where she was diagnosed with a cranial hematoma from a burst blood vessel. She underwent emergency surgery to fix the bleeding. Several days later, Hough said she had begun “the long road to recovery.”
Over the weekend, Hough shared a video showing Erbert, wearing a helmet, an arm linked with his and walking along the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in D.C. The “DWTS” judge also gave another update in the wake of his wife’s “life-threatening event,” which he referred to as “a nightmare.”
“Hayley is doing well,” Hough wrote. “Her recovery process has been nothing short of a miracle.” He mentioned this week’s follow-up surgery, during which surgeons would install a skull implant to “restore the skull to its natural shape and protect the brain from injury.”
The 29-year-old performer had been on the road with Hough since October for his Symphony of Dance Tour. She was a major part of the show, dancing with her husband throughout the performance. However Erbert was noticeably absent during the show’s final bow, as Hough acknowledged each of the key performers. A later performance in Virginia Beach, Va., was canceled.
Hough has not commented on a possible cause of the burst brain vessel, but a year ago Erbert was injured in a car accident with Hough in the San Bernardino Mountains. The crash left her with bruising, scrapes and swelling along one side of her face and forehead, requiring four stitches above her eyebrow.
Symptoms of a cranial hematoma, even those caused by moderate or severe head injuries, may take weeks to appear, according to Columbia Neurosurgery in New York.
Erbert and Hough married this past August after dating for eight years. They first met on ABC’s dance competition show when Hough was a dancer paired with competing celebrities and Erbert was a troupe member.
After Hough announced Erbert’s recent surgery, the dance community, along with a flood of “DWTS” dancers and celebrity contestants, poured out their support.
“Focusing all my positivity and well wishes directly toward Hayley,” wrote the Season 32 champion, actor Xochitl Gomez, in a comment beneath Hough’s post. “She is a shining light.”
Other contestants from Season 32, such as reality TV personality Ariana Madix of “Vanderpump Rules” fame and TikTok star Charli D’Amelio, also left their well wishes.
