!!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!!'s topics - tribe.net

Workshop cancelled!

Chandra — Fri, 09 May 2008 09:16:58 GMT

Fire fan workshop cancelled!
( http://tampa.tribe.net/event/BellyFire-Fusion/dunedin-fl-34698/c98ca5f4-d8cb-4b28-99a7-4d94b1f3e6c9

I'm very sorry to have to announce the cancellation of this event.
I've just been informed that one of the presentors (the one who was to instruct the choreography portion of the workshop) has accepted a conflicting engagement.

I will be refunding the workshop fee to those of you that have paid already. Please contact me if you have already purchased your fire fans from Riz, and we will see what can be done there as well.

Deepest apologies
~ Chandra ~

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 0 replies

a bit farther on

CARMEL — Sat, 03 May 2008 17:31:26 GMT

i've to been my first [ of many ] rh clinics, more blood tests and xrays but my good news is a steroid injection ,wow i feel good today long may it last !.

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 5 replies

Spinal Fusion

Darkdove — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 13:52:06 GMT

I just had a second cervical fusion surgery in Dec 2007 due to a car accident. So I have not been dancing since last July when it happened. It has really taken a toll on me too. I have belly danced since I was 16 years old, o.k. that's over 32 years now.
This bone fusion takes 6-12 months to fuse solid. The first one fused solid in 5 months. But I started dancing a month after the first surgery.
I went to the Orthopedic surgeon last week and he said I can start dancing again. No neck slides and head spins. So I have to learn to restrict my head movements. No hair tossing or head banging for me. But at least I can still dance.
During my down time I finished hand beading a new costume for myself, part of my healing process. Pics are in my profile.

Now time to get dancing and see how it goes. Carefully I might add.

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 12 replies

Welcome!

Darkdove — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 16:23:39 GMT

Hi! Welcome to Belly Dancing with Disabilities, I wanted to create a place for dancers to talk about thier disabilites, permanant, or temporary. How have you compensated your style, or overcome obstacles.

Lets talk. Share inspirations. And free our spirits.

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 24 replies

50

Darkdove — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 03:22:19 GMT

We re alreayd up to 50!!!! I am glad you are finding your way here to share our success and dificulties.

(((BIG HUGS))) and much love to you all!

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 5 replies

And Julie makes two!

Julie — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 18:41:08 GMT

Hello, first time poster here. My name is Julie and I am Carmels sister. Carmel has sent me a link to this tribe as I have Rheumatoid Arthritis too, diagnosed just over a year ago.
It's good to see something like this exists!
I hope to share and learn!

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 15 replies

next joy

CARMEL — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 12:35:14 GMT

just want to share that i'm feeling ok today and actually looking at what to book for the next joy xi've been to m+s to buy some socks no not very exciting BUT i managed to find some cumfy ones for swollen tootsies, i got some small mens!!!!! o well at least it was a shop!

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 1 reply

first timer with a diagnosis!!

CARMEL — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 18:38:07 GMT

hello i have been dancing for almost 8 years~ classical egyptian cabaret and tribal and 3 days ago i was diagnosed with ~ rheumatoid arthritis
. i am feeling weepy and cant quite believe it and WHY ME type of thing

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 11 replies

Inspiration for us all

Anyanka — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 19:51:26 GMT

I know this may not fit into the MS & Fibro or other disbalility discussions on this tribe, but I find this You Tube clip to be a true inspiration to me. All the dancers are deaf & can not speak, but they are truly beautiful. It is my hope that when you are experiencing pain due to your disability or illness that you will watch this & that it brings you atleast a couple of moments of relief.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNI2cvqjc_c&feature=related

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 2 replies

Costumes

Darkdove — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 17:39:50 GMT

Have you had to change your costume designs to dance more safely? Or do you wear different styles now due to your condition that are just more comfortable for you?

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 6 replies

Dancing when you cannot feel your own feet.

Darkdove — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 19:23:13 GMT

In this youtube video of Safiyyah dancing to Il Troubadore's verson of Serenity (oneof her favorites) She is not able to feel her feet and was dancing on an incline that kept pulling us down into the audiance. So keep in mind she is struggling to keep somewhere close to center stage and not fall while performing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZX0j9rlq9AE

Safiyyah has Multiple Sclerosis

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 6 replies

Does the weather make you hurt worse?

Darkdove — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 03:15:16 GMT

Since I am still recovering and healing from my cervial spine fusion, the storms and rain seems to make my neck hurt worse.
Does the weather affect your condition?

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 10 replies

Belly dance and (chronic) illness, some questions

amulya — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 17:00:29 GMT

I'm planning to write an article on belly dancers who have a (chronic) illness. I have once started a topic on this before on Bhuz and I was surpriced to see how many dancers have a (chronic) illness. Since I am one of those dancers and I know I'm not the only one out there I thought it would be a good idea to share stories.

(btw I won't be using other peoples stories without permission)

I'd like to know:

1.) If you have a (chronic) illness, did you have it already before you started dancing? Or did you get it after you were already dancing?
2.) If you already were ill, was it hard to take up classes?
3.) question for pro dancers: I you were already ill before starting your belly dance career, how did you decide to go pro? How does it affect your career? Or if you got ill after you were already teaching or perforing, how did it change things for you?
4.) question for everybody: how does being ill affect your ability to dance?
5.) Does belly dance do any good for your illness?
6.) If you have anything else to mention please do so :-)

I shall start but without giving away too much, otherwise the article will be boring.
I was already ill when I started taking up classes. I thought it would be good for my health to do some light exercise (but I can't call belly dance light exersize!). It was not my intention to go pro, but due to circumsances it just went that way. It was very hard, because I tried to keep up with teaching classes in different towns. In the end I had to quit because I got a burnout. After that I planned it all more carefully. Performing appeared to be the beter way to go for me; less exhausting and beter payment. Still I always kept some classes going, but workshops was the way to go. However that's also very exhausting.
I think if it wasn't for belly dance I would be much more ill by now, it keeps me from becoming a zombi. But then again, there are times when I cannot dance, like now. I don't know if I want to go back teaching again, I have been asked and it is tempting, but all the hassles around it (marketing etc.) are too much. I'll see, it's something I can always pick up again. As for performing, that's a bit easier to get back to, it's more likely I go that direction again.

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 1 reply

Woot! Woot!

Chandra — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 18:31:31 GMT

Bounce! Bounce!
I'm just so freakin' excited here!

today the doors to my studio were open (yaaay!).
I've been planning this for a while now - but in earnest of late. Well, I just picked up my business and merchant licenses yesterday. Classes aren't shceduled to begin till Monday - and I've two workshops coming up this month. A four part fire fan workshop and a drumming for dancers workshop.

Yaaaay! (again)

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 2 replies

Mind adding your .02?

kahlea — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 21:20:19 GMT

http://bdinstruction.tribe.net/thread/793d6f71-23bd-4772-addd-fc67532eb101

Fybro info

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 0 replies

Vary ABle Belly Dancing

Darkdove — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 17:17:14 GMT

Old article but nice from 11/25/05
http://www.abc.net.au/canberra/stories/s1516619.htm

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 0 replies

Not belly dancing but ...

Maura — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 23:58:59 GMT

Axis dance company comes to E-town this Friday. They are supposed to be the best of the 'Physically Integrated Dance ' genre.

http://www.axisdance.org/performance.php

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 1 reply

This has to be one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen!

Darkdove — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 16:25:04 GMT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3Zh_cwLyLQ

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 7 replies

30 Already!

Darkdove — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 00:53:10 GMT

THANKS EVERYONE!
ICANNOT BELIEVE WE ARE ALREADY UP TO 30 MEMBERS. LT'S HEAR YOUR THOUGHTS, STRUGGLES AND VICTORIES!!!!!!

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 2 replies

Dance, when you're broken open......

Darkdove — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 22:45:01 GMT

Dance, when you're broken open.
Dance, if you've torn the bandage off.
Dance in the middle of the fighting.
Dance in your blood.
Dance, when you're perfectly free.
-- Jelaluddin Rumi (13th century)

Here is the whole poem.

Dance when you're broken open.
Dance when you've torn the bandage off.
Dance in the middle of fighting.
Dance in your blood.
Dance when you're perfectly free.
Struck, the dancer hears a tambourine inside her,
like a wave that crests into foam at the very top,
Begins.
Maybe you don't hear that tambourine,
or the tree leaves clapping time.
Close the ears on your head,
that listen mostly to lies and cynical jokes.
There are other things to see, and hear.
Music. Dance.
A brilliant city inside your soul!
--Rumi

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 3 replies

Fibromyalgia

Saar-rah — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 15:28:54 GMT

Hi Liz,

I subscribe to a few health publications because my husband and I are always interested in alternative solutions and new ideas. I read a few things just a week or two ago that I thought I would pass on. I can't know whether these would be good ideas for you, but I just couldn't sit on the information knowing someone who might be able to use it. Take a look and talk to your doctor if you like.

Saar-rah

Food Doctor's Spotlight on Chlorella
Phytother Res, 2000 May; 14(3): 167-73.
10 grams of Chlorella over two months decreased pain by 22%

Dr. Robert Jay Rowen's Second Opinion
January 2008
The Fastest Relief I've Seen for Fibromyalgia
"incredible new antioxidant called Seanol"
It can be ordered by calling 800-728-2288

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 1 reply

My story

Saar-rah — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 18:47:20 GMT

I got a huge smile on my face when I stumbled across this tribe. What a great idea! Sometimes I feel like I am the only one - now I know I'm not!

I have bilateral congenital hip dislocation. It wasn't diagnosed until it was too late to correct with braces. I have gone through many surgeries on my hips including one that further damaged my left hip. Pain management has been a part of my entire life. I can't sit criss-cross-applesauce. I have foot long scars down my hips with football-like hashes. I have always had a limp. My hips, and thus back, are crooked which is visible and causes all my hems to hang longer on my left side. I was always the kid who couldn't be in physical education or was picked dead last for whatever team was forming.

My husband gave me 4 belly dancing lessons for a Christmas gift in 2004. I was mortified. I went with dread in my heart thinking I would have to endure 4 lessons with young, blonde, 19 year old girls who had taken dancing lessons all their life. How wrong I was! The room was full of regular women and girls who all had different bodies and different experiences. I'll be forever grateful to my husband for introducing me to an activity that is so fun, such good exercise, and has introduced me to lots of other regular women who enjoy it too.

My advice in every day life for someone with a disability is pretty simplistic:

Do everything you can to naturally reduce your pain level. Pain wears us too thin.

If you know of an exercise that targets your problem do it religiously. Exercise really can reduce pain and strengthen your weak area.

Be kind to your body with good nutrition. Cut out all the junk you can - processed foods, white flour, white noodles, white rice, sodas, and white sugar.

And when things seem to much to bear I use comparison for a reality check. I can still see, hear, smell, taste, and feel. My brain works. I have food each day and shelter every night. (There are so many in this world who don't even have their most simple daily needs met.) I have a healthy and intelligent daughter who is full of goodness and a husband who tells me that he likes my scars because they are an outward sign of how strong I am.

Keep dancing!
Saar-rah

posted in !!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!! - 3 replies

Dealing with the pissed-off times?

Bo — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 00:09:32 GMT

Last year I went to the doctor for some answers about my lifetime of chronic back issues. I was diagnosed with mild scoliosis (I've got an 8 degree curve in my thoracic section, to the right), which is congenital. Since then, I've been in physical therapy with a really great woman, and I've learned a lot about how my body works. I've built up from pee-wee balance ball exercises to 2-3 gym sessions of weightlifting a week, and most of the time I feel really proud of myself.

And then sometimes, I just get pissed off. I'll do something - one little thing - and it will send my upper back out of commission for a day or days. I'm slowly learning which movements to avoid. This week, I learned to avoid one particular move in our improv tribal class, because there's no way for me to do it without hurting myself (holding the arms over the head, doing two chest circles, with arms "echoing" the motion of the chest instead of remaining straight up). So now I know not to do that one. Okay, good lesson. But the lesson came at the price of one evening spent wanting to cry, lying on a heating pad, taking Ibuprofin and relying on my man to help me on and off with clothing, getting food, etc. A big part of the issue is that some of the muscles involved are my serratus muscles, which fan across the ribs and help lift the rib cage for breathing. So a bad flare up can mean that it hurts constantly when I breathe in and out - not fun.

I know what to do for myself physically when I cause a flare-up. But I am really, really bad at handling it mentally. I'm normally a very patient person, and I feel pretty lucky to have such mild scoliosis and such a good physical therapist and friends. But the combination of suddenly not being able to do half the stuff I need and want to do, combined with pain, makes it very hard for me to stay grounded. I figured this would be the best and most supportive environment, and that other dancers here would know what I mean about just not being able to avoid getting ticked off.

!!!~Belly Dancing with Disabilities~!!!'s topics - tribe.net

Workshop cancelled!

a bit farther on

Spinal Fusion

Welcome!

50

And Julie makes two!

next joy

first timer with a diagnosis!!

Inspiration for us all

Costumes

Dancing when you cannot feel your own feet.

Does the weather make you hurt worse?

Belly dance and (chronic) illness, some questions

Woot! Woot!

Mind adding your .02?

Vary ABle Belly Dancing

Not belly dancing but ...

This has to be one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen!

30 Already!

Dance, when you're broken open......

Fibromyalgia

My story

Dealing with the pissed-off times?

Who Knew? I love this!