This Couple Understands The True Meaning Of 'In Sickness And In Health'

The year 2013 was full of highs and lows for Redditor wellyjup and her husband.

On Thursday, she shared a couple of photos -- one from after her husband's brain surgery and one from their wedding day in December -- to celebrate everything they've been through together in the last year.

"A year ago today, my favourite person had a brain hemorrhage," she wrote. "Following a subdural hematoma, three angiograms, an open brain surgery, and relearning how to walk, talk and write, we're now hitched and expecting spawn."

(Story continues after photos)



In the comments, wellyjup told the story of that "sticky Melbourne summer" day when her then-boyfriend complained of a terrible headache and then started to vomit, convulse and became unconscious. Wellyjup took him to the hospital where they later learned he had had a brain hemorrhage. He was in the hospital for two months getting various tests and procedures and eventually, an open brain surgery. Wellyjup opened up about the recovery process on Reddit, writing:

They wanted him to try to walk. He struggled. His legs wouldn't work, and his balance was tricking him. Little by little, with the help of physiotherapists and a walking frame, he learned to steady himself. Speech therapy slowly allowed him intelligible sentences. We practiced drawing clocks and cubes, and saying tongue twisters slowly. On one wonderful day, we figured out that if I very gently lay down on his left hand side, we could cuddle each other. One morning I came in and his tubes were gone. A few days later, he surprised us all by walking without a walker. He was proud and shaky as a toddler. The next week, nearly two months after the first bleed, they sent him home. The next few months were hard -- he was exhausted and limited, and still coming to terms with what had happened to him. Gradually, he eased back to himself, and was able to return to work. He won't ever be the same -- his speech is still affected, and he gets tired and headachey easily. Compared to what it could have been, this is remarkable. We are so fortunate for the public healthcare system in Australia -- the nurses and doctors were remarkable. They saved his life. We got married in December, and mini-us arrives in May. She has a remarkable Daddy. We're ridiculously lucky.

For more on their incredible journey, head over to Reddit.