Would You Ignore the Call? Back

Sept 16, 2010

So the podiatrist says to me one visit "I recommend you stay off of your feet as much as possible and stop dancing for a month”. She might as well have said "stop drinking water for a month”. Fact of the matter is for a lot of us, dancing is so much a part of our lives that being told to stop is like being handed down a sentence. It’s common for people to ‘take a break’ from the dance community, from teaching or from even going out. However, when advised to stop due to medical reasons, many will ignore the call.

Would you stop dancing right away if instructed by your doctor? Ideally, the answer would be ‘of course’. But have you ever been out and seen someone dancing with some kind of foot cast, or other healing contraption? Now, who knows what direction the doctor gave that person for aftercare, but I’ve heard many people say "I shouldn’t be on this” or "My doctor would get me if he knew”. I know my first thought is ‘He/she knows good and well that they should not be dancing with that brace”. In fact, many people will do not seek medical attention after taking a fall on the dance floor. Possibly thinking it’s not that serious. Some may even have a ‘nothing will hold me back’ attitude when it comes to their bodies and dance.

In my case, what originally brought me to the podiatrist was not injury; but a combination of symptoms including unusual pain and numbness among other things. My thought was that no one in the dance family knew and in fact no one had to know because it was not a visible condition and was personal.

This is important to remember because many people in the dance community have medical conditions which are not visible that lends them to alter how they dance, or how much they dance. For example, in recent years I’ve learned about dancers with fibromyalgia. This ailment that affects the nervous system and may cause constant pain throughout the body. My first thought is "How can someone dance while in total pain throughout their body?” Well, they can and do dance. Most memorable is the comment one person made that they would not want dance partners to treat them any different or pacify them during the dance because of their condition. So they and others often keep their conditions private. I also decided to keep my foot concerns to myself.

So my podiatrist wanted to schedule a biopsy and in the meantime wanted me to stop dancing. Truthfully, the word ‘biopsy’ didn’t even sink in right away. In my mind, if there was no bone damage or injury, I can still dance on it. I imagine for anyone who is a dancer, the thought of any lower body injury, surgery, or other condition sets the mind to wonder "What if I can’t dance after this?” The thought of not being able to dance outweighs the condition.

So I kept dancing, instructing, etc. with the thought that it couldn’t get any worse by dancing on it. Then it struck me that, okay, biopsies are typically done to check for cancer. Oh my goodness. This wasn’t a typical foot ailment. Although I felt the chances were slim, I could have something serious brewing afoot (no pun intended). Now, I knew good and well that I should have stopped dancing but still, I didn’t.

There are many people who have one situation or another that affect their dance ability, agility, and other dance habits at some point in their lives. Ultimately, it’s up to that individual to alter their habits based on what is best, or prescribed for them to do. As members of the dance community it’s important for us to keep it fun, keep it respectful and leave judgments at the door.

And thank God it wasn’t cancer.

Final note: I’m not advising anyone to disregard doctor’s orders, self-diagnose the seriousness of their condition, nor am I promoting disclosure or secrecy of any medical condition. Anyone who experiences any kind of change with their bodies whether it’s pain, sprains, falls, or slips should seek proper care and follow the medical advice provided. No parts of this article should be taken as medical advice.