Wife of NASA astronaut reveals health side effect he’s suffering from after arriving back to Earth

The journey back to full health after returning from space may take a long time. Butch Wilmore, one of the NASA astronauts who spent over nine months stranded in space, is now dealing with some health challenges since coming back to Earth. His wife, Deanna, recently shared some of the difficulties he has been facing. 

Butch and his fellow astronaut, Suni Williams, finally returned to Earth last week after a mission that was supposed to last only eight days. Instead, they ended up staying nearly a year on the International Space Station. Doctors have warned that both astronauts will need a lot of time to recover because their bodies have likely lost muscle strength and bone density. This happened even though they exercised for two hours every day while in space, as required by NASA. 

After undergoing thorough medical checkups at NASA hospitals, Butch was allowed to go home to his wife and two daughters. He hopes to attend his daughter’s graduation next month, but right now, the 62-year-old astronaut is mostly resting and not doing much else. His wife, Deanna, explained that Butch is struggling with Earth’s gravity after being in space for so long. She said, “Barry says gravity is not his friend right now. His stamina is low, so they have to rest a lot because they’re still weak.” 

Deanna also described the emotional moment when the family was reunited with Butch. She said there wasn’t much talking—just lots of hugs and enjoying the happiness of being together again. 

While they were still in space, Suni Williams, Butch’s colleague, spoke about how the long stay affected them. She mentioned how strange it felt to think about walking again after floating in zero gravity for months. “I’ve been up here long enough that I’ve been trying to remember what it’s like to walk,” she said. “I haven’t walked, sat down, or laid down in so long. In space, you don’t have to—you can just close your eyes and float where you are.” 

Despite the challenges, there is some good news: both astronauts were able to walk again less than 24 hours after landing back on Earth. However, doctors are also concerned about the long-term effects of their time in space, including a higher risk of cancer due to exposure to space radiation. 

Recovering from such a long mission takes time. Some former astronauts have said that it can take about one and a half times the length of the space mission to fully recover. Since Butch and Suni were in space for nearly a year, it might take them another year or more before they feel completely back to normal.