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I am a Dancer.
Being a dancer means that you develop a unique relationship with pain.
Can’t say I’m in LOVE with pain, I’m not. I *am* in love with what following the pain, what *weathering* pain, allows me to learn and know about my body, what it needs, and how I can heal it. Or heal it at least some of the time.
Tonight muscle tightness made it hard to stay asleep. I have a, I call it a surgery knee, because I don’t let myself call it a “bad knee”. Especially since, post surgery knee is so much stronger and more stable than broken-ACL knee was for fifteen years.
It was quarter to four in the morning when I woke, peed, and grabbed my trusty lacrosse ball. I’ve just spent like 45 minutes doing trigger point releases in my hamstring, groin muscle, inner thigh, elbow, and forearm. Lucky me, all my serious injuries have been along one side of my body, the right side, my handedness side.
I’ve been forced to learn anatomy over the last thirty years, forced because this is REAL and this is PHYSICAL THERAPY and this is PAIN and if I didn’t learn what to do to help myself after all my major injuries (broken bones, dislocation, severed ligament, none of which were *caused* by dance, funnily) all I’d have is pain medication. Which is a great help as far as it goes, but it doesn’t fix muscle adhesions/scarification.
What has helped? Kinesthetics and ergonomics and learning muscle attachment points and how to do self massage, acupressure, Bowen therapies and many kinds of intuitive movement and stretching.
It’s not a bad life at all. Wish I could get paid for dancing, but it’s something i love and am going to keep doing. I’ve learned so much about myself, what i need, what I can live without and what is essential.
Dance is how I move my feelings and my understanding through the world. My body isn’t separate from my *self*, my self IS my body AND my awareness, working together as a unit. Body IS self. Who tells you different tells lies (and is probably trying to sell you something).
Body is the interface between self and the world. We need connection, we need touch, we need to move, we need to feed ourselves physically and emotionally. We need to give and receive love. And we need to love ourselves as well.
Take care of yourselves, best as you can, in whatever your life situation and body situation. Learn to love yourself, body and spirit (or awareness, however you like to think of it).
That’s all I have for now. it’s quarter to five now, and I’m due up at 8:30.
Be kind to yourselves. I love you.
#dance #dancer #dancing #dance and pain #learning about myself #physical therapy #my knee #my muscles #dance and life #i love all of this #i love my body #i work to take care of it #body is self #move your feelings #kinesthetic ergonomic #learn to love yourself #learn to love your body
cross posted from tumblr.
Being a dancer means that you develop a unique relationship with pain.
Can’t say I’m in LOVE with pain, I’m not. I *am* in love with what following the pain, what *weathering* pain, allows me to learn and know about my body, what it needs, and how I can heal it. Or heal it at least some of the time.
Tonight muscle tightness made it hard to stay asleep. I have a, I call it a surgery knee, because I don’t let myself call it a “bad knee”. Especially since, post surgery knee is so much stronger and more stable than broken-ACL knee was for fifteen years.
It was quarter to four in the morning when I woke, peed, and grabbed my trusty lacrosse ball. I’ve just spent like 45 minutes doing trigger point releases in my hamstring, groin muscle, inner thigh, elbow, and forearm. Lucky me, all my serious injuries have been along one side of my body, the right side, my handedness side.
I’ve been forced to learn anatomy over the last thirty years, forced because this is REAL and this is PHYSICAL THERAPY and this is PAIN and if I didn’t learn what to do to help myself after all my major injuries (broken bones, dislocation, severed ligament, none of which were *caused* by dance, funnily) all I’d have is pain medication. Which is a great help as far as it goes, but it doesn’t fix muscle adhesions/scarification.
What has helped? Kinesthetics and ergonomics and learning muscle attachment points and how to do self massage, acupressure, Bowen therapies and many kinds of intuitive movement and stretching.
It’s not a bad life at all. Wish I could get paid for dancing, but it’s something i love and am going to keep doing. I’ve learned so much about myself, what i need, what I can live without and what is essential.
Dance is how I move my feelings and my understanding through the world. My body isn’t separate from my *self*, my self IS my body AND my awareness, working together as a unit. Body IS self. Who tells you different tells lies (and is probably trying to sell you something).
Body is the interface between self and the world. We need connection, we need touch, we need to move, we need to feed ourselves physically and emotionally. We need to give and receive love. And we need to love ourselves as well.
Take care of yourselves, best as you can, in whatever your life situation and body situation. Learn to love yourself, body and spirit (or awareness, however you like to think of it).
That’s all I have for now. it’s quarter to five now, and I’m due up at 8:30.
Be kind to yourselves. I love you.
#dance #dancer #dancing #dance and pain #learning about myself #physical therapy #my knee #my muscles #dance and life #i love all of this #i love my body #i work to take care of it #body is self #move your feelings #kinesthetic ergonomic #learn to love yourself #learn to love your body
cross posted from tumblr.
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