Dianne Buswell has revealed that she recovered in an oxygen chamber a week after giving birth to her first child as she shared a glimpse of life as a new mother in a post shared to Instagram on Sunday.
The Strictly star, 36, and Joe Sugg, 34, welcomed their baby boy, Bowden, earlier this month.
But as she has been adjusting to parenthood, she revealed her intense recovery and the realities of night feeds.
In her post, she documented her first week as a mum, from having her bump to the enjoying her first Sunday dinner as a family of three.
Alongside her post, she wrote: ‘What a week 1. The last few hours of baby bump 2. Back when I would wonder what your little face would look like 3. One more selfie for good luck.
‘4. The start of what was a very long day 5. A lot happened inbetween but I’m skipping to Home time 6. So cute, we were welcomed with balloons, flowers food and just pure love.
Dianne Buswell, 36, recovered in an oxygen chamber a week after giving birth to her first child as she shared a glimpse of life as a new mother on Instagram on Sunday
The Strictly star and Joe Sugg, 34, welcomed their baby boy, Bowden, a week ago
‘7. Watching this will never get boring 8. The reality of night feeds 9. glorious mornings 10. Welcome cards are my fav and always make me emotional although that is not hard to do at the moment.
’11. Recovery in the oxygen chamber 12. The mirror selfies just got a whole lot better 13. Spring time walks with daddy.
’14. Massive thank you to my Joey who has been looking after us so so well couldn’t of done all this without ya 15. Sunday’.
Her post comes after she confirmed the pronunciation of her newborn son’s unusual name on Instagram.
The couple – who met on Strictly in 2018 – shared that her baby boy was named Bowden, with his middle names a nod to both her beloved father, Mark, and Joe’s late grandfather, Richard, who died in 2021.
Taking to her social media hours after announcing the birth, Dianne revealed how to pronounce it as she shared a sweet photo holding the newborn’s tiny hand.
She wrote: ‘Bowden Sugg. (Pronounced Bow like How, not Bow like Row… hopefully that makes sense)’.
To announce the new arrival, Dianne’s post included a snap of her adorable son in her arms, along with the moment she and Joe brought their baby boy home from the hospital.
Dianne has been adjusting to her new normal of being a parent, she revealed her intense recovery and night feed realities
In her post she documented her first week as a mum as she showed the last hours of having her bump to being welcomed home with decorations to enjoying their first Sunday dinner
Alongside her post, she wrote: ‘What a week 1. The last few hours of baby bump 2. Back when I would wonder what your little face would look like 3. One more selfie for good luck’
Her post comes after she confirmed the pronunciation of her newborn son’s unusual name on Instagram
She captioned the post: ‘Never felt a love like it. Baby Bowden Mark Richard Sugg. 16/03/26.’
Dianne shared her joyful pregnancy news on Instagram back in September, ahead of the latest series of Strictly Come Dancing.
In a video, set to Elton John’s Tiny Dancer, Dianne and Joe set up an easel and pretended to paint a picture together.
They then picked up the canvas to display it to the camera, revealing a drawing of two stickmen – one with Dianne’s signature flaming red hair – holding hands with a baby.
The couple added that their first child was due in 2026 and revealed they were expecting a son.
Joe captioned the clip: ‘Our little baby boy ❤️ we cannot wait to meet you.’
Dianne hinted that the birth was imminent in February in a sweet update.
She created a video montage of her and Joe’s belongings and then added miniature versions.
Dianne said ‘now we wait’ after showing she was ready for the birth with tiny clothes, shoes and even a Strictly-themed onesie ready for the baby.
She captioned the Instagram post: ‘When 2 will soon become 3, the last one!’
She was the first professional in Strictly’s history to compete while pregnant, before her partner Stefan Dennis was forced to pull out due to injury.
Strictly bosses had contingency plans in place for Dianne as she became the first pregnant star to compete in the competition last year.
With the baby due in early 2026 and the Strictly final in December 2025, she could have been dancing right up until her due date, forcing bosses to ensure they had a backup plan.
A source told The Sun: ‘Producers have plans in place, and there are several pros who could easily step in and take over at a moment’s notice, because the show must go on.
‘The BBC’s primary concern is the health and well-being of Dianne and they fully intend to support her through the process with regular check-ins from the welfare team.’
When the duo was forced to withdraw, the rumour mill was quickly flooded with people speculating that Stefan’s injury was, in fact, a cover-up and that Dianne’s pregnancy was the reason for their withdrawal.
But Dianne rushed to Instagram to squash the rumours, penning: ‘Just to clarify as I have had lots of people msg me thinking this is a cover up for me being not able to dance!?
‘Firstly we wouldn’t lie especially about somebody being sick! And secondly I am fine, yes I am pregnant, but I’m also very capable and feeling really good!’
She also explained that there are protocols in place regarding the professionals sickness as she added: ‘Thirdly there are things in place if any pro were to get sick or injured.’