Wheeler was born in Winter Haven, Florida,[2] the daughter of Irving, a lawyer, and Carolyn Wheeler, a singer,[3][4] and has three brothers.[4] She first acted on stage at age nine.[3] She graduated from Winter Haven High School, and later attended Queens University of Charlotte, North Carolina. She also attended the University of Florida at Gainesville, where she earned a master's degree in drama and English, as well as earning a doctorate from Florida State University at Tallahassee.[5]
Wheeler began her career in New York, appearing in three commercials, an Off-Broadway play,[5] and a play titled Gypsy.[6] In 1998, Wheeler appeared in a new ABC sitcom Two of a Kind, playing the role of "Carrie Moore", a college student who was the babysitter of Mary-Kate and Ashley (Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen).[3]
After the series ended, Wheeler guest-starred in the television series Spin City.[1] She appeared in the soap operas Another World, As the World Turns (as "Wendy") and Guiding Light.[7] Wheeler also appeared on stage in Detective Story and Fiddler on the Roof, and As You Like It.[7] She performed at the Worth Street Theater Company, where she co-starred in the play In the Forest of Arden, playing the role of "Rosalind".[8] In 2008, Wheeler appeared in the comedy-drama TV series Lipstick Jungle, and in the police procedural series Blue Bloods in 2013.[2]
