Strictly Come Dancing professional Dianne Buswell has revealed she feared she would never dance again after experiencing "unbearable pain" while recovering from an emergency caesarean section.
The 37-year-old dancer, who gave birth to her first child in March this year, is currently competing in the show with TV presenter Will Best. She welcomed son Bowden Mark Richard Sugg with her partner, former Strictly contestant Joe Sugg, on March 16.
Recovery struggles after emergency caesarean
Buswell had originally hoped for a natural birth, but her plan changed and she required an emergency caesarean. Speaking to The Human Edge podcast, she described the difficulty of her recovery, including struggling to sit up in bed.
"There was one night I had to go to the toilet in the middle of the night and I just burst into tears because the pain of just sitting up to manoeuvre myself out of bed was just unbearable," she said. "I was like: 'How am I going to recover and will I ever be able to dance again?'"
Fear of losing mobility and strength
The dancer said the pain tore through her muscles and left her feeling she had lost all mobility in her legs and her core strength. "I'm never going to be able to dance again," she recalled thinking. "It was very intense."
Buswell, whose son is now eight months old, said the first couple of weeks after giving birth were the toughest, but she then "started to feel so much better every day". She eventually regained her strength and was paired with Will Best, known for presenting the rebooted Big Brother on ITV.
Career highlights and challenges
The Australian dancer joined Strictly in 2017 and won the Glitterball trophy with blind comedian Chris McCausland in 2024. She has also finished as runner-up twice, with Joe Sugg and with actor and model Bobby Brazier.
Two of her celebrity partners have pulled out of the competition due to illness and injury: comedian Robert Webb and Neighbours actor Stefan Dennis, with whom she competed during her pregnancy. The Strictly Come Dancing results show airs from 7.15pm to 8pm tonight (Sunday, November 15) on BBC One.
