Derek Hough and Hayley Erbert appear on “DWTS” almost a year after Erbert's health scare

Derek Hough and Hayley Erbert delivered a moving ballroom performance on Tuesday night's episode of “Dancing with the Stars.”

The duo brought the “DWTS” audience to tears as they danced to Benson Boone's “Beautiful Things (Acoustic)” during the show's “Dedication Night,” marking Erbert's return to the “DWTS” dance floor following her emergency craniectomy and cranioplasty December 2023 marked .

“Of course it was the biggest challenge, physically and mentally, that I have been through in my entire life,” said Erbert after her performance. “It took a toll on all of us as a family and I just never know what you're capable of until you go through something like that.”

“I'm really proud of myself, I'm proud of my body and how I got through this,” she added.

Erbert underwent an emergency craniectomy in early December 2023 during her Symphony of Dance tour in Washington, DC. At the time, Hough said in an Instagram post that Erbert was “lost” and “was diagnosed with a cranial hematoma due to a ruptured blood vessel.” and required an emergency craniectomy.”

According to StatPearls, an online library published by the National Library of Medicine, the procedure is typically performed in emergency situations, reducing stress on the brain.

Later in December 2023, Erbert underwent cranioplasty, which is “a surgical procedure to cosmetically and functionally repair skull defects,” according to the National Library of Medicine. It is “usually carried out after traumatic injuries”.

“It was kind of a crazy time,” Hough said, reflecting on Erbert’s health emergency in a recorded piece played before her performance. “Hayley and I set off again for the final leg of the tour. We were living out our dreams on stage, doing what we love, with the person we love, and then it all came to a halt in the most devastating way.”

Hough, who calls his wife his “beautiful miracle,” said Erbert needs to learn to walk again and regain his strength.

Despite the challenges she faced, Hough said Erbert always “had a smile on her face.”

“I was just so impressed with her strength,” he said.

He added that the dance was “a moment for us to be on stage together again, doing what we love.”

“The fact that we can dance together again is nothing short of a miracle,” Hough said. “I’m just beyond grateful. I’m so grateful.”

Erbert called Hough her “rock in everything.”

In February, the couple shared a video update on Instagram in which Erbert talked about her “new outlook on life” and how “grateful” she was “to be alive and here to tell my story.”

In April the duo returned to their Symphony of Dance tour. Since then, Erbert and Hough have kept their fans updated on social media.

In August, the couple celebrated their one-year anniversary and shared a joint Instagram post about the “stormy year.”

“Being married for a year to the most beautiful person I know,” Erbert said in the post’s caption. “We have experienced the highest highs and experienced the lowest lows, but I have never been so sure that a year ago I made the best decision of my life and committed myself to you in this life.”

“Cheers to many more years of messy beauty,” she added. “I’m so excited for all the future chapters we have yet to write. I love you always and forever.”

You can find more sweet dedications behind each star's appearance here.