Joe Amabile knows he’s a lucky man to have wife Serena Pitt holding his hand through all their ups and downs, including his recent brain surgery.
“To my lovely wife 🤎Happy anniversary to the most beautiful, caring, perfect, person that I know,” Joe, 40, wrote via Instagram on Wednesday, September 2.
The Bachelor in Paradise alum paid homage to Serena, 28 — with whom he eloped in October 2022 before tying the knot a second time in September 2023 — following a trying few months as a couple. (Joe underwent brain surgery in August after finding a lesion.)
“These past few months have been pretty tough to say the least,” Joe wrote. “You have been there with me every single step of the way, taking in all the good and the bad news.”
Joe, who was lovingly known as “Grocery Store Joe” on season 14 of The Bachelorette, noted that his wife always brought the positive vibes no matter the challenges they faced as a couple.
“You cried alone in our bedroom because you didn’t want to bring me down. You cleaned, you cooked, you podcasted,” Joe recalled of Serena’s efforts. “You went to every doctor’s appointment, you dealt with the doctors and nurses, made sure all my medication was taken on time, and if I woke up at 2:30 in morning so did you …you did it all.”
He gushed over his life partner, adding, “I couldn’t be more lucky to have you as my wife, my partner, and my best friend. I love you forever and always ♥️.”
Joe shared three pictures alongside his tribute, one of the pair on their wedding day, one following his surgery and the third “was about 10 days after surgery we went for brunch. Way too soon lol,” he wrote, commenting on the picture that showed both Joe and Serena making silly faces.
Joe’s sweet message to his spouse came nearly two months after he announced via Instagram on July 13 that doctors found “a blueberry size lesion” on his brain which appeared to be a tumor during an MRI scan.
The “Not Married To This” podcast cohost explained at the time that he planned to undergo surgery in the next few weeks to “get it removed and get it tested.”
Joe revealed on August 6 that the doctors “got it all” and he was recovering.
One week later, Joe gave an update on his health, sharing via Instagram that he was diagnosed with “an astrocytoma, but it’s very low grade.”
Astrocytoma is a type of brain tumor or spinal cord tumor that starts in cells called astrocytes and may result in headaches, seizures, nausea or changes in mood or behavior, according to Mayo Clinic.
“They did get the whole thing,” he said on August 12. “When it comes to malignant brain tumors, they don’t know what’s left over, so I will be going on treatment, which is just a pill every day for the rest of my life to put the bad cells to sleep and hopefully they stay asleep.”
At the end of the month, Joe appeared on Good Morning America, revealing that his speech was slowly coming back as the lesion was located in the area of his brain that’s responsible for “speech, motor skills and memory.”
“I would say I’m about 90 percent back but I still struggle a little bit,” he explained.
