Cheryl Burke candidly admits maintaining her sobriety is ‘a challenge’

Cheryl Burke candidly spoke about her sobriety on Tuesday, admitting that maintaining it “has been a little bit of a challenge” of late.

In an 11-minute YouTube video, the “Dancing with the Stars” pro, 37, opened up about anxious feelings she’s recently endured after nearly three years of sobriety.

“I’m here to confess that lately, staying sober has been a little bit of a challenge for me, and recently, I’ve been thinking a lot — I have to admit — about drinking again,” Burke said. “So I’ve decided to hold myself accountable by confessing my anxious feelings.”

Detailing her journey to sobriety, which began after her engagement to now-husband Matthew Lawrence, Burke described giving up alcohol as “a huge turning point” in her life.

“I basically quit cold turkey, but to say I’ve never looked back would be a lie,” she explained, noting her late father, Stephen, had also struggled with alcoholism.

Burke, who said she never joined a 12-step recovery program but has worked with a therapist, added Tuesday, “Obviously there is something bothering me that I don’t necessarily want to feel or face, and it is a trigger.”

Reflecting on a recent Hawaiian getaway with Lawrence, 41, the dancer said, “Just that carefree feeling of being under the sun, my husband may have had a glass of champagne, my senses have come back even stronger ever since I decided to stop drinking, so, the smell of it, I missed.”

The “Pretty Messed Up” podcast co-host also expressed her concerns about what drinking could look like again.

“I’m nervous that if I start drinking, that’ll get me into other things that I may have never done before,” she said. “When I have any feelings of doubt, betrayal, uncertainty, those for me are red flags. … I know intellectually, living in the unknown, I have to surrender to that, but it’s a lot easier said than done, and my go-to is booze, is anything that numbs and gets me out of my head.”

She continued, “There’s just so much chaos going on in my life right now, that, in the past, everyone used to say, ‘I don’t know how you do it all,’ but I did it all because I was numbing through it all. And now, for the first time, through all the chaos, I’m actually having to feel it and to feel uncomfortable, while feeling it.”

Burke said receiving messages from supportive fans has been “very encouraging,” noting that hearing stories from others “actually really helps.”

“I think that’s also what keeps me sober, is knowing that I’m actually telling my story because I know that I’m helping other people, and I just know that, you know you’re not alone,” she said.

Burke then assured fans that, despite everything, she is “committed to stay sober.”

“I know that the first thing to do when you have those anxious feelings is to be able to talk about it,” she explained. “It’s one day at a time, but as you guys can see, some days can be harder than others. I know that my feelings are completely normally, so I’m trying not to feel shame or judge myself, and it’s hard.”

In response to Tuesday’s video, Burke received an outpouring of support from her followers and “Dancing with the Stars” family, including judge Carrie Ann Inaba.

“Proud of you mama,” Inaba, 53, posted to Burke’s Instagram, while “Bachelor” alum Catherine Giudici commented, “Sending you love friend.”