Dancing, training and issues with body image, resilience, etc.

[DancingtoDance]

On 08/10/2020 at 20:53, Nama said:

My daughter had mental health issues after a very difficult graduate year at a uk prestigious ballet school. She needed considerable mental health treatment from psychiatric doctors and therapy. This treatment at the school and associated company required a lot of rebuilding of her confidence and belief in a future. She’s not the only one - and she’s a very confident and articulate young woman. But even she was shattered. This was despite my constant requests for help ( in person and email) for her from the school AD  He and teachers made the assumption that he believed she was ok as she appeared “stoic” and “coping “. My daughter knew that if she collapsed in a heap and let her emotions out in class she would be told to act professionally and learn resilience. It would be held against her. If this was a normal school ignoring mental health issues and openly commenting in a class situation regarding a students emotional state - the institution would be in serious trouble. Parents need to look at the situation as a service and a school environment- if you are unhappy with the service you are paying for call that school management to account ! If it says school over the front door your child deserves to get all the usual protections dictated by law. 

I’m so sorry to hear about what your daughter has gone through. That was not her fault at all, and not a reflection on her. No career, including a career in ballet, is worth one‘s physical or mental health. 
 

It is important validate people’s emotions. Validating children’s emotions is one way to help them learn resilience.

 

I think anyone’s physical and mental health would be compromised under a poor environment.

 

[Guest oncnp]

This might be of interest from Scottish Ballet

 

Scottish Ballet: Questions you should never ask a dancer - YouTube

 

[alison]

I don't know whether this is the most appropriate thread, but while catching up with the Links page I came across this:

 

Body shame: a ballerina's story - Dance Australia

 

"This article is an excerpt from a feature called Body Shaming and Ballet in the current print issue of Dance Australia, with more advice from Queensland Ballet Academy's Zara Gomes. Don't miss this crucial reading! Buy your copy from your favourite retail outlet or on-line here or here."

[Beezie]

Great article!

 

The thing I dislike most about ballet:  It can make slim, beautiful and strong girls (and boys) feel inadequate…..because they aren’t meeting this genetic standard that perhaps 0.01% of the human race can achieve.  
 

Just a comparative breakdown:

Basketball players: tall

Gymnasts: flexible, short

Model: thin, tall, memorable face (but maybe not traditionally pretty)

…

Ballerina: thin, strong, no chest, no hips, long neck, average height, flexible, fully turned-out hips, high arch, high instep, generally pretty face.  The physical requirements to excel are like 10x more specific than any other sport I can think of.  

 

And then, honestly, I watch dance teachers get all gooey-eyed over those ‘perfect ballerina’ physical attributes.  If a dancer has them all, a lot of leeway seems to be made for her actual talent.  Or, at least, she is provided with every avenue of training up until she fully and thoroughly demonstrates a failure-to-progress.  (Conversely, a normally proportioned/jointed girl may struggle to access all the same training opportunities regardless of strong musicality and art form.)

 

No wonder our young lady and men dancers have body issues!

 

As audience members:  Let’s celebrate the movement and emotion, and struggle against our human inclination to focus on the physical body shape.  We need to remember that art is making beauty out of imperfections.  

[Lifeafterballet]

Most probably as a result of her poor diet, she developed hormone problems and did not menstruate until a doctor intervened and put her on the pill at age 24.
 

The pill is not the answer sadly 😞 

Missing those teenage development milestones is hugely detrimental to bone density and fertility. 
All the bone health supplements in the world won’t repair the damage, just hopefully stop it getting any worse. 
Just like with this dancer, Covid saved my daughter from continuing to harm her body and start on her recovery journey. 
This should be taught and talked about openly in our vocational schools.