Hayley Erbert is taking steps toward healing.
Derek Hough shared that his wife is on the mend after getting an emergency surgery on her skull due to a burst blood vessel.
"Hayley has always inspired me with her will, her strength, and her resilience and no more so than in the last 48 hrs," the Dancing With the Stars judge wrote on Instagram Dec. 8. "She is now on the long road of recovery."
Derek, 38, thanked fans for sending kind messages amid Hayley's health challenges.
"Words cannot express how grateful and thankful we are for the support and love that you have given us," he continued. "The kindness that we've been shown in this incredibly unfathomable, and life changing time is immeasurable."
He said many people have reached out to try to help the 29-year-old, calling the offers "so humbling and appreciated."
"Our hope is that as a family," Derek added, "we can somehow and someway pay it forward."
Hayley's health took a turn for the worse following the couple's Dec. 6 Symphony of Dance tour performance in Washington, D.C. The dancer was transported to the hospital after appearing "disoriented."
"She was diagnosed with a cranial hematoma from a burst blood vessel," Derek wrote on social media Dec. 7, "and required an emergency craniectomy."
He said Hayley was in stable condition following the procedure, in which part of a patient's skull is removed to reduce pressure on the brain caused by the bleeding.
In the hours after the surgery, Derek's sister Julianne Hough also spoke out to ask for prayers for her sister-in-law.
"Please pray and send all your love, healing and light to Hayley and Derek," the DWTS cohost wrote on her Instagram Story. "Thank you from the depths of our families hearts!"
Read on to learn more about Derek and Hayley:
Derek Hough and Hayley Erbert meet back in 2014 when she performed on his and sister Julianne Hough's tour. A Dancing With the Stars producer is impressed with Hayley and she is called to interview to join the show's troupe, getting the job the following year, according to the Hutchington News. Also in 2015, she and Derek begin dating.
The two begin going out to public events, including at the 2016 premiere of the Tony Robbins Netflix documentary I Am Not Your Guru.
The duo get glammed up for a star-studded night out.
The dancers make their red carpet debut as a couple at the Television Academy's 2017 Choreography Peer Group Celebration at Saban Media Center in North Hollywood, Calif.
Hayley joins Derek as his date for the Creative Arts Emmys, where he was nominated for Outstanding Choreography for his work on Dancing With the Stars.
The two attend the star-studded Casamigos Halloween Party.
Hayley joins Derek as he hosts The Americana at Brand shopping mall's Christmas tree lighting event in Glendale, Calif.
The two attend the Hollywood premiere of Solo: A Star Wars Story.
The couple steps out at HBO's post-Emmys celebration.
They aren't pumping the brakes as they attend the premiere of Netflix's El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie.
The two pose for pics at the Elton John AIDS Foundation's Oscar viewing party.
Feeling festive, they dance on the special to ring in the Christmas season.
The two are all smiles at the premiere in Los Angeles.
The partners appear at the Creative Arts Emmys, where Derek wins Outstanding Choreography for Variety or Reality Programming for his work on Dancing with the Stars.
The two dance as they arrive at the 2022 Elton John AIDS Foundation Oscars viewing party.
They look top tier on the red carpet.
Hayley flashes her engagement ring at the Critics Choice Real TV Awards.
The two get cozy at the launch of the Disney-Pixar film.
August 2023: Just Married and Honeymoon
The couple honeymoon in Italy following their Aug. 26, 2023 wedding in California.
December 2023: In Sickness and in Health
Derek was by Hayley's side as she underwent emergency skull surgery due to a burst blood vessel. "It was a time filled with uncertainty and fear, going from living our dreams onstage, to a nightmare in an instant," he wrote on Instagram over a week later. "Her recovery process has been nothing short of a miracle."