We can't lie, we've all experienced many struggles as dancers. Some are bigger than others. Most non-dancers would never understand all of the struggles that we go through on a daily/weekly basis, although they might try to. Below are just a few of the thousands of struggles we have:
1. Having a cold/runny nose and having to do turns.
You always are saying your head during class, "Please don't have us do fouettes."
2. Dancing in my room: *clean triple* Dancing at the studio: *falls out of prep*
No matter what it, always works this way and you wish it was the opposite.
3. When you run out of leggings and normal pants, so you wear your jazz pants.
Jazz pants are pants, right?
4. When you start sweating before you do pliés, and it's not even warm in the studio.
All you have to do is breathe and you sweat.
5. The bump you get when you take your hair down after having it in a bun all day.
The bump is even worse when you forget to take your hair down the day before and you want to wear it down the next day.
6. Wearing a leotard and having to pee. "Eh, I'll just hold it."
And if you do go pee then it takes you an extra couple minutes because of your leotard and tights.
7. Non-dance friend: "We need to hang out! When is your dance season over? Me: "Um, never..."
They just don't understand us dancers.
8. When your phone tries to autocorrect normal words such as "just" to dance words such as "jeté."
This is only useful when you're talking about class to your dance friends.
9. If you're not sore, then you're not working hard enough.
Are you even dancing if you're not sore?
10. No matter how hard you try, it is impossible to get eyelash glue off your eyes after a performance.
I can honestly say that I probably have glue on my eyes from the first time I ever wore fake eyelashes, and that was more than eight years ago.
11. Watching dance videos instead of doing homework.
Homework isn't important, right?
12. When you change spots at the barre, it's like a whole new perspective.
It's like you're in a whole new world when you stand somewhere new.
13. When someone asks you what type of dance you do and you just ramble off a list or just say "all types."
I've danced for so long, I don't even know all the types of dance I've done to be able to tell you.
14. That one bobby pin in your bun that sticks into your skull and makes you want to cry.
It's always a happy moment when you pull that particular bobby pin out on the first try.
15. When sweat drips into your mouth while you are dancing.
Hey at least now you don't have to get a drink from your water bottle to moisten your throat.
16. Caring more about dance then a social life.
Who needs a social life to have fun?
17. If you want to know what's on a dancer's mind, it's either something related to dance or food.
Trust me, that is seriously all that we think about. Well, maybe sleep also.
18. Having to wear stage makeup to school.
People are always like, "There's something different about you." Ah, yeah I have like a pound of makeup on, and I normally don't wear any.
19. Dance teachers are a gift from god.
OK, so this one isn't actually a struggle, it's a blessing.
20. That awkward moment when you mess up right after your teacher gives you a compliment.
It never fails to happen.
21. When you can't fall asleep because you have dance combos looping in your head.
It's so hard to not think about them cause you want to make sure you remember them for the next class.
22. Using a bobby pin instead of a paperclip or a staple.
Why waste paperclips and staples when you always have bobby pins laying around?
23. Trying to remember new choreography.
This is always a struggle, 'cause you always feel bad if you do forget it.
24. When you realize the tights you put on are ripped.
You want to change them, but at the same time you don't really feel like taking them off to put on a different pair.
25. Me: "Sorry, I can't I have dance." Friend: "Well, can't you just skip this one time?" Me: "No it doesn't work that way, goodbye."
When are they ever going to pick up on the fact that I can't just skip class?
26. Those days when you can't make a bun to save your life.
Those are the days when you struggle dancing well.
27. I can't sneak anywhere because my bones pop and click when I move.
That's why dancers can never sneak out late at night, everyone always knows when they are moving around.
28. When your arch cramps up in the middle of tendus.
This is probably one of the closets feelings to death that dancers feel, well besides dancing on pointe.
29. When you're learning a combo and you don't realize that it's actually twice as fast until the music comes on.
And then music starts, and you have a mental panic attack.
30. Calves are so big that none of your skinny jeans/jeggings fit right.
But you still buy and wear them anyways.
31. I have 20+ pairs of tights, but only two don't have runs or a huge hole in them.
It's like you're a hobo dancer when it comes to class, but when it comes to performance time, you clean up well.
32. When your parents take you grocery shopping after you had dance and look disgusting.
Seriously, what are they thinking? It makes them look bad and that they let their children out in public looking like hot messes, and they just don't care.
33. I'd rather dance in front of 1,000 strangers than give a presentation for my class.
I'd much rather show you what I want to tell you than speak words in front of you.
34. You have not experienced pain until you drop a full water bottle on your bare foot.
Especially if that water bottle is made out of metal.
35. Never being able to find the leotard that you want to wear when you want to wear it.
OK, yes you have several leotards, but you always have an idea in your head of which ones you are going to wear for each day of the week.
36. Not wanting to take off your stage makeup because you know you'll never be able to get it that perfect again.
But then next show you do even better and you have this struggle all over again.
37. Making your teacher cry because of your dancing.
Again this isn't really a struggle, but you never know what to say when this happens.
38. When your teacher tells you that you better be sore tomorrow, because being sore is good.
It just makes them so happy knowing that they made you sore.
39. Having to explain to people that no, I'm not anorexic, I'm a dancer.
Like I said earlier food is always on our mind.
40. When you are in the first group across the floor, and you didn't pay attention to the combination.
You just hope the rest of your group was paying attention so you can follow along and not make a fool out of yourself.
