Rylee Arnold shares how managing type 1 diabetes shaped her dance career and social media role

Young dancer Rylee Arnold reveals how her diagnosis at 15 challenged her to balance health and ambition, highlighting the importance of community, authenticity, and social media influence in her journey to success.

Rylee Arnold has built a fast-rising career on “Dancing with the Stars”, but the young performer says her path has also required a hard-won lesson in managing type 1 diabetes. Speaking to Us Weekly, Arnold said she initially believed her diagnosis at 15 might force her away from dance altogether, only to discover over time that the two could coexist if she learned to look after her body carefully.

The 21-year-old said the early months were especially difficult, as she tried to adjust to treatment while still living the demanding schedule of a teenage dancer. She recalled feeling self-conscious about taking injections around friends and classmates, but said that attitude changed once she understood that protecting her health was essential to staying active in the long term.

Arnold’s breakthrough, she said, came gradually. After years of learning how her body responds to different situations, she now feels more confident about managing the condition day to day. She also said social media has played an unexpected role in that process, with TikTok and Instagram giving her a sense of community and helping her realise that other people with type 1 diabetes face many of the same struggles.

That perspective has mattered at key moments in her career. Arnold said stepping away from the “Dancing with the Stars” tour last year to focus on her health was emotionally difficult, but ultimately necessary. The decision underscored a broader shift in how she approaches life now: not as a choice between dance and health, but as a constant effort to balance both.

Arnold’s rise on the franchise began early. TV Guide lists her among the cast of “Dancing with the Stars: Juniors”, where she competed in 2018 at age 13, and she reached the final alongside Miles Brown. Just Jared Jr. reported that she was paired with Brown and mentored by her sister, Lindsay Arnold, who was already a familiar face in the ballroom world.

Lindsay Arnold has remained one of the younger dancer’s biggest influences. In an interview with PopCulture, Lindsay said working alongside her sister on the juniors series was especially meaningful, and Rylee has since said the best advice she ever received was to stay true to herself. She repeated that advice on the “Dancing with the Stars” season 34 cast reveal red carpet, telling People that authenticity matters more than winning approval from everyone.

As the franchise has leaned further into social media culture, Rylee Arnold has also become part of its appeal to younger viewers. She told The Hollywood Reporter that behind-the-scenes TikTok videos were initially just a fun way to share her experience, but that cast members such as Charli D’Amelio helped draw in a new audience. Arnold said the shift surprised her, recalling that her sister once joked that the show mainly had an older fan base.

Away from the ballroom, Arnold has found romance too. She said she met college football player Walker Lyons after an Uber driver, who turned out to be his aunt, suggested they might get along. Arnold said she later looked him up on Instagram, thought he was cute and eventually started talking to him before he asked her out.