“I need me to coach me. I need a coach like Abby Lee Miller to get on me and I will walk again someday,” says Dance Moms coach and cancer survivor, Abby Lee Miller, about the process of rebuilding her muscles after complications from cancer surgery.
Abby Lee Miller’s Journey with Cancer
Miller, 53, was diagnosed with Burkitt lymphoma in April 2018, and underwent an emergency surgery on her spine as well as six rounds of chemotherapy treatment. Despite regularly attending physical therapy treatments, Miller is still confined to an electric wheelchair in order to be mobile. However, she has reassured fans that she is working hard to build her strength and walk again. However, due to the coronavirus pandemic, her physical therapy appointments have stopped in order to keep her and staff safe. In order to keep exercising, Miller told The Sun that she’s been relying on her friends to hold her accountable for morning workouts and routines.
Read MoreBenefits Of Exercise After Cancer Treatment
Following cancer surgery, many people may assume that avoiding exercise is the way to go. However, exercise can actually offer a huge benefit when it comes to recovery. According to experts, exercise after surgery can improve your circulation â which improves your wound healing and the fluid movement through your body, help soften any scar tissue that may be in the area (especially exercises that involve deep breathing or extending your chest and arms), and improve your endurance after surgery.
In the very beginning after surgery, doctors may recommend "physical activity and movement" as opposed to "exercise," so as to reassure women that she isn't saying they have to get right back into a full-on gym program right after surgery.
“Starting to move more, starting a moderate walking program, starting a deep breathing program, all of those things can help with posture, endurance, and strength,” says Dr. Angela Wicker-Ramos, certified lymphedema therapist, and oncology physical therapist for Cancer Rehab and Integrative Medicine. “[It can] just get you back to where you were before and get you to ultimately, recover long-term from your surgery.”
Dr. Angela Wicker-Ramos explains why exercise can benefit patients after cancer treatment
For breast cancer survivor Heather Maloney, she exercised regularly during treatment in order to keep her body and healthy so it could fight the disease better. To stay positive, she joined a dragon boat team a rowing sport. By joining a community, Maloney was able to focus on other activities rather than her cancer diagnosis, which helped her mental health tremendously.
Related: 5 Things Women Can Do to Reduce Cancer Risk With Actual Evidence to Back Them Up!
“I want to do whatever I can to make my chances of a long life better,” Maloney tells SurvivorNet. “It’s important to me to be very active and to be moving.”
Breast cancer survivor Heather Maloney says exercising helped her cope with cancer treatment
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