*Before you read this I want to stress that I am not a trained doctor in anyway, but simply writing from what I have seen*

As I'm sure we all know, one disease people immediately pin point to dancing is anorexia. I know most people would say that the majority of dancers are thin, and with that most of us would agree. However, when people say that, they are thinking about the professional dancers, yet applying it to the recreational or junior dancer.

In terms of size and shape, a dance class is like a school classroom; there are girls of all different weights and sizes, gifts and talents. There are the tall girls, the shorter ones, the skinny girls and the larger ones, and then the spot in the middle average girl... the list goes on. When younger, many children are the size they are due to hereditary inheritances and the lifestyle they have grown up with. But as they get older, they become more aware with their size and shape, and constantly worry more and more about it, to the brink where they develop anorexia.

The main problem is that dancers are portrayed as anorexic by the media, yet if you went down to a regular ballet class, you would see girls of all figures. When they get older, and become more aware and self-conscious of their body, and thoughts like "I'm not skinny enough" and "I'm so big!" start sinking in. The worst thing a girl can think is "I'm too big for ballet" and quit. Girls, YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE SMALL TO DO BALLET!!! YOU ARE ALL PERFECT THE WAY YOU ARE!!! I cannot stress this point enough! Obviously, there are extremes when it affects your health, but ballet is meant to be fun and enjoyable, so don't give up on it just because you don't think you have the right body for it! There IS no real body for it, only what has been presented by the media. The true ballerina's body is the one whose heart is filled with love and passion for the dance.

Dancing is supposed to be a sport, a hobby, something for everyone to enjoy. When people say 'dancers' lots of people immediately think of the professional ballerina, but a dancer is simply anyone who dances! Go down to a local dance school, and walk inside. Who are you greeted by? Dancers! Lots of boys and girls who simply dance because they LOVE to, because it makes them happy, because they ENJOY it. That’s what dancing is meant to be about!

Sadly, most of the professional dancers are small, but then again, don't pin point them to being anorexic. Most dancers do a lot of physical exercise, and eat a well balanced diet. A lot of them are just hereditory small, and this mixed with the other helps keep them small and fit. However, saying this, I know that there are some dancers who DO over exercise, and who DON'T eat a well balanced diet, who DO sadly have eating disorders, but don't call every dancer anorexic, because it's not fair to those who aren’t.

Many websites go on to explain the risks of getting anorexia when associated with dancing, here are just a few. If you are interested, check them out, and then leave your thoughts, ideas, opinions and stories on this post, but please don't start an argument or leave rude comments!
Dance Art: www.danceart.com . . .
Dance Help: www.dancehelp.com . . .
Anorexia Nervosa: anorexia-nervosa.suite101.com . . .

Anorexia affects people in more ways than they can imagine. Have a look at this picture a simple outline (picture from Dance Help)


As I said above, I am not a trained doctor, nor am I a specialist on eating disorders. I simply want to urge everyone who is reading this to encourage girls of all shapes and sizes to not worry about their figure, but worry about their hearts! We need to reinforce that all girls are perfect they way you are, and shouldn't worry about the way they look! How many great dancers have we lost due to eating disorders - please lets not lose any more, or turn them away from the start! And really, is the way you look in a leotard really a good enough reason to give up something you love!?

So remember girls, boys, everyone, that the true ballerina's body is the one who's heart is filled with love and passion for the dance.
So keep dancing x

Great post! I never thought of a lot of the things you pointed out. Good thinking!

Thankyou. I hope that these messages, and many more, can get out to reach lots of girls

Hmm....nice post and you had great intentions BUT....personally, my anorexia has NOTHING to do with weight or my body. Those are just symptoms of the problem.

I know i cant be a ballerina when im skeletal, hell, thats how I lost my professional ballet career.

Anything, nice thought though.

^ Of course not all eating disorders are related to body weight, ballet etc. They are much more than that.

However, I think a lot of body image problems do surround ballet, whether they are held in conjunction with an eating disorder or not, and this post is a great reminder that you don't have to be 'thin' to do ballet.

Great post

My anorexia had absolutely nothing to do with ballet - I had taken zero dance classes when I got really sick. I only started ballet after I got out of the hospital - ballet was actually sort of my recovery. It made me feel beautiful, made me feel like how I moved my body was beautiful... ballet was a great therapy for me and my recovery.

Also I hate to point this out but some of the stuff in here could really be triggering. I know that wasn't your intention, but when you have a problem it's really, really easy to be triggered by the most well-meaning things.

Just a question: where did you get this picture from?
Good post

I'm really sorry SOADftw , i didn't mean that, nor wish it, in any way :S

Ballenina: The picture is from Dance Help, but here is the link - www.dancehelp.com . . .

My anorexia and bulimia have been with me for the last 12 years or so, maybe longer, and have nothing to do with ballet. Its much more than that. I know this post is trying to be helpful and supportive, but really what it makes me feel like is that you are belittling the real seriousness of eating disorders and equating them to a superficial image issue. Its not about wanting to look thin in a leotard. The root of the problem is much deeper than that. I realize there are some people who like to pretend thats the reason for their illness but in my experience (a lifetime of hospitals, therapy and more) those people are just hiding the real truth. Its different for everyone, but I don't think many people starve themselves to death to look good in tights. A very high percentage of anorexics and bulimics have a serious anxiety issue, OCD, bipolar disorder, chronic depression or have a history of sexual abuse.

I know your intentions are good, but I worry about the overall message.

I just keep coming back to this because I find it offensive and triggering. And I know that wasnt your intention at all but.. Its something like a person saying that people who self injure do it because scars look cool. Eating disorders are a silent protest and far more serious than just poor body image. Anorexia and bulimia are the most deadly of all psychiatric illnesses due to starvation, imbalances and suicide.

In this post you say:
"and really, is the way you look in a leotard really a good enough reason to give up something you love!?"

I hope you realize that anorexia isn't about looking good in a leotard. And the girls and guys who die from this slow, awful painful disease aren't dying for fashion or even dance, but because they have a deep inner pain that they have no other way to cope with. Yes, a lot of dancers develop anorexia, probably because they learn that restriction and food are a way to CONTROL their anxiety and their lives. I've lost friends to anorexia and bulimia, I have had a heart attack, ruptured my throat more than once, have early osteoporosis, spent over a year in hospitals, and EVERY time I force myself to eat I weight my own self worth verses those calories. When I am sick, I AM my weight. How I look in a leotard is the least of my concerns. The number on the scale tells me how much I am loved and valued, how I feel about myself and the world, how well I can control my life. Once again, trust me, the problem manifests as a weight issue, but deep down its something far deeper.

For example: Think of it like OCD. People don't really, say, collect hundreds of newspapers because they really like newspapers. To say that is to simplify and belittle the obvious deeper inner turmoil of the disease. People with OCD are often trying to control their environment. Well, e.d's are a lot like that.

When people equate anorexia with a desire to look fashionable, they encourage shame in those with E.D's. Many people don't seek treatment just for this reason. Its pretty humiliating and frustrating, All that said, and I know I've said a lot, I hope you don't really think anorexia is about looking skinny for dance.

I think the OP's message may have been misinterpreted.

Let's stop for a second and take another look at the post, shall we?

As I'm sure we all know, one disease people immediately pin point to dancing is anorexia.

The main problem is that dancers are portrayed as anorexic by the media

This post doesn't so much attribute anorexia to dance as it discusses the implications of the media and other people attributing anorexia to dance, and making generalisations that most dancers are underweight and/or have eating disorders.

yet if you went down to a regular ballet class, you would see girls of all figures

Before we're so quick to conclude that this post should interpreted as blaming dance for eating disorders, belittling the suffering of those with such illnesses, or in any other way misleading, insulting and triggering, let's consider that maybe Ballet_Babe_Sash's intentions were the opposite. That's certainly how it looks to me.

I think Ballet_Babe_Sash's message is that it's a common misconception that eating disorders are so closely linked to dance, that dancers are almost always underweight, and that underweight dancers therefore must have eating disorders. I think her message is also that you shouldn't feel that you need to be a particular build to be a dancer, and therefore you shouldn't listen to anyone who says you need to be thin to dance.

Lastly, I can think of one very good reason why Ballet_Babe_Sash's post does focus on dance... it probably has something to do with the fact that this is Dance Dot Net - she's sending out her message to dancers, that's all. Let's not to put her down for her well-meaning post, and let's try not to take her message out of context. It's important to know when to pick your battles, and sometimes the words of a well-meaning forumite are not worth fighting against. Constructive conversations will get everyone a lot further, and if you're really sensitive to particular discussions, it's worth noting the title of a thread and thinking carefully before clicking on it. I don't meant to sound insensitive, but then again, I think it's insensitive to be unnecessarily critical of a well-intentioned thread (especially when it is misinterpreted like I think this one has been).

Peace out, yo.

Sorry to burst your good-intentions bubble, but as someone who almost died from anorexia, I can't well let these things go unsaid.

People often go into the disease knowing from the start all of the physical risks associated. I know I did. And then when you're sick, people are always droning on about how anorexia can hurt your bones, heart, etc., thinking that it'll make a breakthrough and you will suddenly start wanting to recover.
Though the intentions are good, it's really not the support that's needed. Anoretics KNOW the risks of what they're doing. Anorexia often completely consumes the life of its sufferers. The problem is that the sufferers will go on with this disease DESPITE the risks they know about.

Similarly,

Girls, YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE SMALL TO DO BALLET!!! YOU ARE ALL PERFECT THE WAY YOU ARE!!!

Do you want to take a guess at how many times an anorexic person or person at risk hears this? It, again, becomes droning and meaningless. You don't believe it for a second. That's where the problems are.

Most people who aren't therapists or people who've had anorexia really have no understanding of what anorexia really is or how it functions in an individual. They carry a lot of myths, (www.youtube.com . . .) and really don't know what's under the surface (which is pretty much everything). The problem is that in order to help, you yourself have to gain some understanding of what's underneath anorexia's surface.

As Arecibo said, weight and body obsessions are just symptoms. It's important to address them and eating in recovery, but you won't get anywhere if you don't work on the underlying problems and their sources.

Thank you for turning your attention to this problem and making an attempt at helping, but maybe you should educate yourself a bit more on what anorexia really is.

^I really don't think that this thread was created with the intention of helping people who suffer from eating disorders. I'll agree that if it was, then it falls a little short... but I think a lot of people are jumping to their own conclusions.

To me, it seems more that the OP is trying to break the myth that eating disorders are as big a part of dance as people like to think, and one of the main messages that I'm reading is that she's just encouraging all people to dance. Ie, it's not true that all dancers are thin, it's not true that all thin dancers have eating disorders, and therefore no matter what your build, if you want to dance then you should. If this is the case, we probably needn't patronise the OP.

^But we are dancers. Why would we need those myths broken if we're the ones who'd know firsthand whether or not they're true?

Guys, I think this is a good post. I sent the link to a few non dancer friends and they also found it helpful. If it is triggering and you find it offensive, why do you keep coming back? Why not ignore the whole post?

I think people are narrowing down anorexia a lot when it comes to fighting back against this post. Yes, a lot of people do turn to anorexia as a way of control in hard times and it's not about body image. But a lot of the time, it IS. Dancers DO develop anorexia sometimes because they want the ballet body and they want to look perfect, and a lot of schools and academies give them this pressure. I'm sorry, I've seen it a hell of a lot - I've had anorexic thoughts and for me, it was typically about body image and looking right in dance. A post like this would have really helped me when I was having those thoughts. The OP is not wrong as such, you are just focusing on a different type of anorexia - or rather, anorexia with a different cause. Just my POV.

OP, I like the post, and thank you for it. It's clear a lot of hard work went into this.

^ There is a HUGE difference between your 'anorexic thoughts' and someone weighting 42 lbs, having a heart attack and then getting up to cut herself so she can bleed out the weight of blood. I had a roommate at Stanford Hospital do that, and yes, she died. Anorexia (for me) is intentional, silent self-loathing and self-destruction.

There is also a huge difference between someone who thinks "Maybe I'll go on a starvation diet to be skinny" and someone who develops full blown anorexia. You are way over simplifying this complicated disease. The cause of e.d's are individual, personal causes. I have met countless anorexics who say "I wanted to be thin for dance' and then 20 min into therapy start sobbing and talking about how they need to be perfect to be loved, or how they were abandoned, or how they needed something to focus on and weight was something no one could control for them. Maybe it starts as a diet, but what makes someone stop and what makes someone continue down this path are what marks the difference between an anorexia and a diet gone wrong. I cant even believe that you would equate the two. Thats like saying "I have a freckle so I totally understand your cancer."

Do you think alcoholics drink because they are really just happy people who really enjoy the taste of alcohol?

I'm done here. This is just demonstrating how misinformed so many people are and obviously, what those of us who have battled serious E.D's are saying is going unheard.