How To Deal With Injuries

Injuries are pretty much inevitable when it comes to dancing. During performance seasons, I dance up to 30 hours a week. Dancing this amount can definitely be done, but it is important to take care of yourself by staying hydrated, getting plenty of rest, and eating enough and by getting a lot of nutrients. But suffice to say.. even in great health there is still a possibility of injury..it's just part of being human. Say you are about to start class, and you notice that you feel a little fatigued before class begins, but you think it's nothing to worry about, and so you go and give it your 110% on that double inside turn that goes into a layout, then a pas de bourrée turn following into a step step passé... well you get the gist.. and then BAM, your ankle gives out and you fall to the ground. You never even saw it coming! This type of situation is commonly synonymous with ankle sprains or twisting of the ankle.. or for worse cases- an ankle break- god forbid! But yes, injuries do just happen.

So what to do when you are injured and cannot dance for X amount of time. Well I unfortunately know first hand, because I happened to break my foot about 7 months ago, by simply riding my bicycle home from dance class, and got knocked off of my bike accidently by another person. I broke my second and third metatarsal- right there at the ball of the foot...and as we dancers know, this is a very important part of our foot. Its where we balance on releve, how we turn.. and well do pretty much everything.

During the 5 months that I did not dance, I relaxed A LOT, iced my foot every day for around 15 minutes about 3-4 times a day, kept it elevated (above my heart level), watched a ton of movies and shows, did floor barre EVERYDAY- working on the small details such as making sure I was turned out properly while doing floor barre, and also worked on my flexibility. Was I depressed at all? Of course I was, but this did change over the course of the first month or so. I have to be completely honest with you.. it was hard to watch my friends perform without me, and to see them heading to class and rehearsals all time-- just as I had been before my break. It felt like I was being left out in a sense. But when I came to the realization that it was JUST broken bones, and that I didn't even need surgery.. I felt happy to know that I will be able dance again and quite soon. Yes it put me behind, but I felt lucky that I would heal.. and that this experience will only make me a stronger dancer and person for that matter. I must state that there are men and women out there that are dancing in wheelchairs, so anything can be done! Realizing that I will heal from this, and that it is just going to give me a stronger understanding of how precious my body really is, gave me more patience and gratitude.

I must give a shout out to one of my favorite teachers, Brinn Nicole. At the beginning of every class, she asks her students to come and sit in a circle to face one another, she then leads us through a body awareness/appreciation sequence, where place our hands on every part of our body, while stating a positive affirmation, as well as our gratitude for each and every part of our bodies. This is a practice I highly recommend for anyone reading this post. The power of thought combined with real intentions is more potent than you may realize.

Each and everyone of us is lucky to have what we have. It is our instrument, and it is important to love it, appreciate it, and to listen to what it needs. If you are injured, trust that you will heal, and just relax and allow your body to do what it does best- which is heal. As long as you are resting, staying hydrated, eating a balanced diet, following your doctor's orders, and staying positive, you will see that soon this shall pass, and that you will come out of this wiser and stronger. TRUST.