HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Cheryl Burke has revealed that she was molested as a child.
The two-time Dancing With the Stars champ makes the revelation in her new book, Dancing Lessons, in which she also talks about being physically abused by two former boyfriends.
"I’m telling my story," Burke, 26, tells People magazine of her past. "They’re not secrets. There’s no shame."
The dancer said the assaults began when she was 5. Her abuser was a retired mailman who was well liked in her native Bay Area community. In fact, he would occasionally pick Burke up from school and work around her family’s home, the mag said.
Burke, whose parents split when she was just a baby, said she didn’t realize at first how inappropriate the man’s behavior was.
"I felt guilty for wanting his love and affection," she recalled.
Burke came forward after the man was accused of molesting other children, but struggled when the time came to testify against him.
"I saw his face and lawyers were asking me these questions and I was like, ‘What am I doing? Did he even do anything wrong?’ " she told the mag.
Her feelings about the abuse changed after the man was sent to prison and she spent years in therapy.
"If I can help just one person," Burke said, "for me that’s all that matters."
Also see: Cheryl Burke Pictures
