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The long-simmering sibling rivalry between Derek<\/strong> and Julianne Hough<\/strong><\/a> has finally cooled \u2014 but it took a family crisis to do it, a source exclusively dishes to Life & Style<\/em>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n In a frank interview, the Dancing with the Stars<\/em> cohost Julianne, 36, says the duo became close once again after Derek\u2019s dancer wife, Hayley Erbert<\/strong>, fell ill following a performance with her husband in Washington, D.C. last December.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Hayley, 29, was found to have suffered a cranial hematoma, with blood pooling inside her skull and causing dangerous pressure on the brain!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n She underwent emergency surgery<\/a> to relieve the pressure, then underwent a second surgery to replace the portion of her skull removed during the first one. And Julianne says while Hayley convalesced, she and her big bro, 39, put aside their differences.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cSomething happens and it just is like a clean slate,\u201d she says. \u201cThere could have been little things just kind of looming or lingering in the background, but when you\u2019re left with life-or-death situations, nothing else matters!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n And she explains that although she works with Derek, who serves as a judge on DWTS<\/em>, they are far from two peas in the same pod, with both differing in their \u201cbeliefs or understanding of things.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe thing that hurts the most is when we\u2019re not connected,\u201d she says. \u201cAnd so sometimes you do the thing that hurts the most, which is remove yourself because you\u2019re trying to protect yourself.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cSo, our family is like any other family. We have our situations and our s\u2013t!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n While fans may be shocked Julianne has admitted often feeling distant from her brother, a pal says the pair is now on a better path.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n