Inside the Hidden Health Battles of Astronauts After 286 Days in Space: What They Didn’t Expect

Can you imagine signing up for an eight-day space gig and then accidentally spending nine months orbiting Earth without so much as a hint of overtime pay? Yep, that’s the wild reality Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams found themselves in after blasting off to the International Space Station in June 2024. Nearly 300 days stuck in zero gravity—missing family, living through a whirl of challenges, and still somehow managing not to miss Christmas. Now, back on solid ground and after a brutal two-month rehab stint, they’re spilling the beans on the serious struggles of readjusting to life with gravity—because who knew that coming home could be such a pain in the back, literally? Dive into their incredible journey of endurance, both in space and back on Earth. LEARN MORE

Even though they’ve been home for over two months now, it seems remarkable to think that Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams spent 286 days stuck in space.

The US astronauts blasted off for what was supposed to be an eight-day trip to the International Space Station in June 2024, but they ended up spending nine months of their lives up there, without even so much of a sniff of overtime pay for it.

They’ve already talked about some of the harrowing moments they had during their time stuck up there together, and it wasn’t even missing Christmas, with the hardest part for both of them seemingly the time apart from their families.

Although their eventual return to Earth was highly documented and celebrated, there were also a number of concerns raised while they up there as to the health that they would face when they splashed back down.

Barry ‘Butch’ Wilmore and Sunita ‘Suni’ Williams are still adjusting to life back on Earth (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

And now, after a gruelling two months of rehabilitation, Williams and Wilmore have shared some of the problems they’ve had since being rushed straight to hospital upon their homecoming in March.

Wilmore, who has shared that he is still struggling with back pain two months on from landing back on Earth, said: “Gravity stinks for a period, and that period varies for different people.”

He talked more about the issues he had pretty much as soon as their capsule re-entered the Earth’s atmosphere, saying: “We’re still floating in the capsule in the ocean, and my neck starts hurting, while we still hadn’t even been extracted yet.

“I still got a little twinge in one spot in my back after a couple of months.”

And Williams admitted that it’s ‘been a little bit of a whirlwind’.

The astronauts started their rehab pretty much as soon as they landed (NASA / Keegan Barber / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)

“I knew we were going to get home at some point in time. We just got to wait for the right ride and make sure everybody’s all good with that and we’ll get home,’ Williams told WFAA during a NASA welcome home celebration last week.

For the 59-year-old, struggles revolved around sleep, as it was only recently that she was able to get back to her ‘early bird’ schedule, which involves waking up at 4am.

Both astronauts have been working with NASA’s medical team to rebuild muscle mass, restore their balance in Earth’s gravity, and prevent further bone loss, all of which are serious issues which can stem from spending too long in space, where muscles can soon turn to jelly.

Fortunately, now that their two month rehabilitation programme is complete, both Wilmore and Williams seem to be nearly back to full fitness, even if they are still adjusting to life with gravity again.