“Dancing With the Stars” professional dancer Daniella Karagach was recently asked how she got into ballroom dancing in the first place. She revealed that it was part of helping her learn to cope with severe ADHD as a kid.
Dancing Kept Karagach Off of Medication
In a recent Instagram question and answer session with her followers, Karagach revealed that she got into dancing as a way to help her manage her ADHD.
“When I was little, I couldn’t focus in school and was always fidgeting. My mom took me to see a doctor and they diagnosed me with severe ADHD,” said Karagach.
“They wanted to put me on medication, but my mom, who is a psychologist, didn’t want me on meds,” Karagach continued. “She looked into ballroom dancing and I fell in love with it after my first class. I started doing better in school and I was more focused. The rest is history. Dance became my life and my passion.”
Karagach has only been part of the “Dancing With the Stars” family for two seasons (and she hopes to be a part of season 30), but she has been winning dance competitions all over the world for over a decade alongside her husband, fellow “Dancing With the Stars” professional dancer Pasha Pashkov. The two of them have been dancing together since 2009 and were married in 2014. Pashkov has been a “Dancing With the Stars” pro for two seasons, pairing with Kate Flannery and Carole Baskin, and Karagach has partnered with a celebrity once, finished in third place with rapper Nelly in season 29. She was a part of the DWTS troupe in season 28.
Karagach Misses Competing
While she loves “Dancing With the Stars,” Karagach also revealed in her Q&A that she really misses competing on the international level because she misses the improvisation that goes along with it.
“I miss improvising — not knowing which song is going to be given and making it unique every time we danced,” said Karagach. “I miss dancing in front of live audiences and dancing amongst very hard-working and talented couples.”
But what she doesn’t miss is being judged so critically, even if she does acknowledge how much that made her grow as a dancer.
“I don’t, however, miss being compared to and judged, although that’s something I’m extremely grateful for and was a part of my process growing as a dancer,” said Karagach. “I feel every dancer is special and so unique in their own way. I couldn’t feel more blessed to grow up in the ballroom dance industry.”
Karagach also misses touring with the “Dancing With the Stars” gang. She recently posted an “I miss touring” photo dump on Instagram and all the pros were crying in the comments about how much they miss each other.
“Ohhhh I miss this and you!” wrote Lindsay Arnold. Witney Carson chimed in, “I miss you!!!!!” Both Arnold and Carson took season 29 off to have babies.
“Urgh, I miss this so much!” wrote Emma Slater. Gleb Savchenko added, “The best! I miss this so much!!!!”
“Dancing With the Stars” season 30 premieres Monday, September 20 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.
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