Dance Moms star Abby Lee Miller has been candid regarding her health woes. She claims her imprisonment played a large part in how she is now dependent on a wheelchair.
Legal Troubles and Incarceration
Miller was charged by authorities in 2015 for allegedly hiding $775,000 in income from her various TV projects, including Dance Moms and its spin-off Abby’s Ultimate Dance Competition. She allegedly kept these earnings in concealed bank accounts sometime between 2012 and 2013. In June of 2016, Miller was found guilty of fraud from within a bankruptcy. The court imposed a sentence of one year and one day in federal prison, followed by two years of supervised release. She also received a $40,000 fine and was ordered to forfeit $120,000 associated with currency-reporting violations.
Health Complications During Incarceration
Miller alleges that during her sentence, she was suddenly removed from all of her medications. This immediate stop, she feels, caused significant health problems. She said, “That’s why I’m in a wheelchair,” emphasizing that they had done this to her and his prison.
Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment
Miller needed emergency spinal surgery shortly before her April 2018 release. Doctors thought she had a spinal infection, but it turned out to be Burkitt lymphoma, a rare type of fast-growing non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. After ten courses of chemo and a great deal of rehab, she was ok. Nonetheless, she continues to use the wheelchair.
Reflections on Prison Experience
Miller has called the probe into her finances an “absolute witch hunt.” According to her, the judge’s wife was an alleged “super fan” of “Dance Moms,” which she says could have something to do with how harshly she was sentenced. Miller admits she made mistakes but thinks her punishment was too severe as she looks back on time in jail.
Ongoing Health Struggles
Miller has other health issues besides his fight with cancer. Due to the treatments she underwent with chemotherapy, her bones had turned into glass; this resulted in several fractures, especially to her right leg. As she has dealt with these issues, her recovery from being immobile has slowly progressed. In spite of these hurdles, Miller remains focused on walking once again and lessons dance while connecting with her followers on social media and podcasts.
Public Perception and Media Coverage
Miller has been shedding light on inmates’ experiences, notably medical experiences. This history points to the possible lasting health effects of failure to provide adequate medical care while being incarcerated. Here, claims have received copious media coverage, which made way for the broader topics of prison healthcare and the difficulties former inmates face with respect to dealing with society.
Future Endeavors
Miller is still an active member of the entertainment industry despite her ongoing health problems. She is planning a new show, Abby Lee Dance With Me, where she’ll mentor another set of young dancers. The importance of this project is a testament to her work in the dance community and that she plans on maintaining her career in one way or another despite not being able to move physically.
