![EXCLUSIVE: Dance Moms star Abby Lee Miller doesn’t flinch as a gymnast SOMERSAULTS over her during an outing to an LA beach. The reality TV star, 55, bravely lay back in her wheelchair as the muscular shirtless performer ran towards her then vaulted above her. Miller, who shot to fame as the star of hit show Dance Moms, has been using a wheelchair after undergoing surgery to remove a tumor from her spinal cord after reportedly being diagnosed with a form of cancer called Burkitt Lymphoma. Miller’s visit to the beach in Santa Monica, CA, saw her talking to a man and a woman dressed in workout gear before giving him a series of dance lessons. An onlooker said: “Abby was in great form and started giving the guy dance lessons. "She was teaching him to move and how and when to move his feet and it seemed he was struggling to get the hang of it. It was like she was back on the show Dance Moms and was shouting orders at him to ‘move to the side’ or ‘back right’. She appeared to be trying to teach him ballet just like she did to kids on the series. “It looked the guy had some gymnastic training and so afterwards they did a stunt where he ran at her and somersaulted directly above her.” Miller spent eight seasons on Dance Mom and previously taught Joelle Joanie “Jojo” Siwa. In 2017 she was sentenced to 366 days in prison for bankruptcy fraud. 31 Aug 2021 Pictured: Abbey Lee Miller. Photo credit: KAT/MEGA TheMegaAgency.com +1 888 505 6342 (Mega Agency TagID: MEGA782922_021.jpg) [Photo via Mega Agency]](https://preprod.hollywoodlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Abby-Lee-Miller-Spotted-In-Wheelchair-MEGA-1.jpg?quality=100&w=282)
![EXCLUSIVE: Dance Moms star Abby Lee Miller doesn’t flinch as a gymnast SOMERSAULTS over her during an outing to an LA beach. The reality TV star, 55, bravely lay back in her wheelchair as the muscular shirtless performer ran towards her then vaulted above her. Miller, who shot to fame as the star of hit show Dance Moms, has been using a wheelchair after undergoing surgery to remove a tumor from her spinal cord after reportedly being diagnosed with a form of cancer called Burkitt Lymphoma. Miller’s visit to the beach in Santa Monica, CA, saw her talking to a man and a woman dressed in workout gear before giving him a series of dance lessons. An onlooker said: “Abby was in great form and started giving the guy dance lessons. "She was teaching him to move and how and when to move his feet and it seemed he was struggling to get the hang of it. It was like she was back on the show Dance Moms and was shouting orders at him to ‘move to the side’ or ‘back right’. She appeared to be trying to teach him ballet just like she did to kids on the series. “It looked the guy had some gymnastic training and so afterwards they did a stunt where he ran at her and somersaulted directly above her.” Miller spent eight seasons on Dance Mom and previously taught Joelle Joanie “Jojo” Siwa. In 2017 she was sentenced to 366 days in prison for bankruptcy fraud. 31 Aug 2021 Pictured: Abbey Lee Miller . Photo credit: KAT/MEGA TheMegaAgency.com +1 888 505 6342 (Mega Agency TagID: MEGA782922_032.jpg) [Photo via Mega Agency]](https://preprod.hollywoodlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Abby-Lee-Miller-Spotted-In-Wheelchair-MEGA.jpg?quality=100&w=440)
Abby Lee Miller is on the road to recovery. The Dance Moms star, who has been to prison and was diagnosed with Burkitt’s lymphoma in the space of a few years, has opened up about her recent surgery that’s allowing her to walk again. “I want to have more independence. I want to live my life. I want to be able to jump in the shower anytime I want, anytime I feel like it. That’s a huge goal,” she revealed to Extra. “People see me sitting in the chair, and I’m in makeup and hair and, ‘Oh, she’s doing great.’ They don’t really see what goes on behind closed doors. It’s rough. Very rough.”
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The former reality star underwent a lifesaving spinal surgery two years ago, and thankfully, she’s now cancer-free. Nevertheless, being wheelchair-bound has its challenges, so the dance coach opted for another surgery to help her regain mobility. “Because she got all this chemo, her bone quality was not the best,” her surgeon, Dr. Hooman Melamed said. I’m not going to lie; it was a very tough surgery to reconstruct, the nerve was extremely compressed, and you had to do a lot of lot of work, way more than you normally would.”
After the seven-hour surgery, Abby began doing “amazingly well” and is back on her feet according to Dr. Christopher Boudakian of the California Rehabilitation Institute. “She’s really come a long way. It’s really a testament to her strength and her will to get back on her feet… She is now able to stand from the chair and walk, what did you do, about 100, 150 feet?” Abby then chimed in, “150 feet today.”
She also opened up to the outlet about her upcoming TV endeavors, and what she has in the works. “I have a scripted show and two reality shows in the works right now. I probably wasn’t supposed to say that, but I don’t care. I want to get back to working with children again and I’m doing a project with older kids actually, no moms,” she revealed.