Strictly Come Dancing pro Dianne Buswell has shared the frightening fear that hit her after an emergency C-section: what if she could never dance again?
The 2024 Strictly winner welcomed son Bowden “Bowie” with partner Joe Sugg in March. Speaking on the Oxydise podcast, Dianne said the early days of recovery were “very intense” as she dealt with pain, hormones and caring for a newborn while struggling to move.
Dianne Buswell on her C-section recovery
Dianne said: “You basically are bedridden, also it’s your hormones going wild as well. So you’ve got that on top of pain on top of having this newborn and wanting to give it all your attention, but also you can’t even get out of bed.”
She recalled one night when simply trying to go to the toilet became overwhelming.
“Even to sit up is like a real mission. There was one night I had to go to the toilet in the middle of the night, and I just burst into tears because of the pain of just sitting up or having to manoeuvre myself out of bed was just unbearable,” she said.
For a professional dancer, the physical impact sparked a huge worry about her future.
Dianne said: “I was like, ‘How am I going to recover, and will I ever be able to dance again?'”
She added of her initial thoughts: “This has absolutely torn through my muscles. I’m never going to be able to dance again. I’ve lost all mobility in my legs. I’ve lost my core strength.”
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Dianne is set for Strictly return
Dianne said she started to feel “so much better” after passing the “two-week mark”, describing that first stretch as “the main struggle”.
And despite those early fears, her Strictly return is now on the cards. Dianne is among the professional dancers returning for the upcoming series, which is due to begin in September on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
Read more: Strictly stars Dianne Buswell and Vito Coppola announce tour news for next year
The show has also announced former England footballer Shaun Wright-Phillips as its 10th celebrity contestant for the new run. He joins Delta Goodrem, Chris Appleton, Cach Mercer, Will Best, Dame Sarah Storey, Lacey Turner, Dani Dyer, Bethany Antonia and Jaime Winstone in the confirmed line-up so far.
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