Danielle Fishel’s six-year-old son, Adler, struggled with his mom’s absence while she competed on Dancing with the Stars.
Appearing on the Pod Meets World podcast on Monday, the 44-year-old actress said that although things at home seemed fine, she soon realised her son was having a harder time than he let on.
“So my family has had to make so many adjustments to our daily life since I started season 34 of Dancing with the Stars,” said Fishel, who shares sons Adler, 6, and Keaton, 4, with husband Jensen Karp. “I’m just not able to be there as often as I used to be.”
Before joining the show, Fishel said she was always involved in her kids’ routines like school pickups, sports, and afternoon activities. But her demanding rehearsal schedule made that unlikely.
One day, she got a call from Adler’s teacher after he told classmates that his dad had lost his job and his mom had died.
“The teacher reached out because she was understandably concerned,” Fishel recalled. “I showed up at school, and when he saw me, he ran over and said, ‘Mom, what are you doing here?’”
Fishel told him she’d just come from rehearsal and wanted to see him. When she mentioned she had to go back later, Adler broke down.
“He said, ‘I hate this job. Why did you take it? All you do is dance, dance, dance. You never hang out with me and Keaton anymore. I want you to quit,’” Fishel shared.
Fishel admitted she felt heartbroken but stood firm. “I told him, ‘Mommy loves her job, and I made a commitment. It’s not forever, but I’m not going to quit.’”
Though Adler was still upset and even slammed the car door when they got home, Fishel said they’re working through it as a family.
Fishel, who starred as Topanga on Boy Meets World, was eliminated from Dancing with the Stars last week.
