Tragic Details About Former DWTS Champ Cheryl Burke's Health

The following article contains details of addiction, body dysmorphia, and eating disorders.

Cheryl Burke may have left "Dancing With the Stars," but she was a dance pro for 26 memorable seasons on the show. Burke — who joined "DWTS" for its second season in 2006 — had one of the greatest transformations on "Dancing with the Stars." Throughout her nearly two decades on the show, she danced with some of pop culture's biggest celebrities and even won the competition twice. However, between her career highlights, the TV star endured life-altering lows.

The truth is, Burke overcame many adversities throughout her time on the show; being in the public eye has come with its challenges. Burke has been the subject of intense criticism over her weight and overall health, including speculation that she used Ozempic and underwent plastic surgery. During her years on "Dancing with the Stars," she dealt with alcohol abuse and her body image. Looking back on her days in the ballroom is equally tragic as it is remarkable.

Cheryl Burke was a small-town girl growing up, but was overwhelmed when she began her public-facing life in Hollywood. "From my social anxiety to living here in Los Angeles, going to red carpets, that is not something that I will ever get used to," she told Elizabeth Vargas on her podcast, "Heart of the Matter." She eventually turned to alcohol as her way to cope with the chaos. "It was just an escape from my own reality," she revealed. It got to a point where she was a functioning alcoholic and no amount of booze would affect her. She asserted: "I'm definitely an alcoholic and addict."

In 2018, she decided to cut substances out of her life. The journey through sobriety hasn't been easy for Burke, who at times has found herself wanting a drink. "I feel like I'm walking on a really tight rope at the moment," she said on a 2022 episode of her podcast, "Pretty Messed Up," with AJ McLean and Rene Elizondo Jr. Burke admitted that she is constantly battling the fear of relapsing, especially around people who are not sober. She told a story about being on the brink of drinking at a friend's birthday party. "I just can't have one," she said. "And I might as well ... go into like this rabbit hole for a couple of weeks."

If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).

In November 2022, Cheryl Burke announced on social media that Season 31 would be her final season as a pro on "Dancing with the Stars." "The cast, crew & fans have seen me through my highest highs & some of my lowest lows," she wrote on Instagram. She noted that part of her reason for exiting the show was to focus on new opportunities, including "mental health advocacy." Burke has openly shared her experiences with her own mental health. She candidly described being diagnosed with OCD and perfectionism on Instagram in September 2025. "I've struggled with perfectionism my whole life, and though it may have helped me win at times, it nearly destroyed me," she said, adding that her father was also diagnosed with OCD. Burke noted that, although her OCD supported her competitiveness as a dancer, it "consumed" the other aspects of her life, like keeping an overly tidy home.

Burke also opened up about the depression she experienced as a TV personality. The public aspects of being a dancer on the hit competition show affected her self-worth. After being subjected to body shaming in her early days of "DWTS," Burke told Us Weekly, "I did get a little bit depressed," noting that it only got worse after social media use skyrocketed. She has even admitted that the harsh criticism led to body dysmorphia.

Even with a legendary history in the competition, Cheryl Burke is one of the many former "DWTS" pros who have had bad experiences on the show. Opening up on the "Hypochondriactor" podcast in 2022, Burke discussed the body dysmorphia she endured as a dancer. "So when I look at myself in the mirror and someone says, 'oh, you look amazing,' I see someone who is overweight and not — in my eyes and in my way of judging myself — not amazing." 

Burke spoke more on the topic in an Instagram Reel from 2024. "No matter how much progress I make, there's a part of me that constantly focuses on perceived flaws making it hard to feel confident regardless of what anyone may say or think," she wrote in the caption. "It's a daily battle between reality and the image my mind creates."

If you or someone you know needs help with mental health, please contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), or visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.

The way Cheryl Burke's disorder would manifest was normally through her eating habits. In a "Get Ready With Me" video on her YouTube, Burke admitted that at one point she was on a "Hollywood diet" that had her strictly consuming "liquid juice" and no solid food. Though she told Us Weekly that she is unsure if she ever struggled with disordered eating, Burke has admitted that her old eating habits were not sustainable.

"I would only eat at night," she told Us Weekly, noting that emotions usually drove her meal-time habits. She has since learned what works for her body and is much more relaxed about her meals these days, but Burke said of her previous routine: "I've learned that starving myself, then eating one big meal, doesn't work for my body. I was also not wanting to eat in front of people — that was a trigger for me." Fortunately, Burke found success in her weight loss journey, going about it in a healthier way. However, the former "DWTS" pro has been the subject of intense criticism online since her transformation.

If you need help with an eating disorder, or know someone who does, help is available. Visit the National Eating Disorders Association website or contact NEDA's Live Helpline at 1-800-931-2237. You can also receive 24/7 Crisis Support via text (send NEDA to 741-741).

As much as O.G. "Dancing with the Stars" fans were ecstatic to hear about Cheryl Burke's appearance as a guest judge on Season 34 of the show for its 2025 Halloween episode, her return made headlines for a different reason. Burke's seemingly unrecognizable appearance dominated the spotlight in the days that followed. In the years since her "DWTS" retirement, Burke made changes to her diet and fitness routine that helped her lose over 30 pounds, as she told People in October 2025. But that weight loss transformation was a catalyst for internet vitriol. Rumors spread that Burke was sick or that she was secretly taking a GLP-1, like Ozempic, to help her shed significant weight.

As someone who has experience with body dysmorphia, Burke has been triggered by the incessant commentary on her appearance since she began losing weight. "The assumptions are just exhausting as hell, the accusations are completely cruel, and the fact that so many of them are actually coming from women, that is what's so shocking and hurtful, to be quite honest," she said in a May 2025 TikTok. In the caption, she denied getting plastic surgery, using a weight loss drug, and being sick. It sounds like Burke is feeling healthy and happy, and trolls on the internet can't extinguish that light.