Reply to When a "good thing" happens to your teen that you did not want to happen...

Forum Index » Tweens and Teens

Reply to "When a "good thing" happens to your teen that you did not want to happen..."

Subject:

Emoticons





More smilies

Text Color: Font: Close Marks

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Usually those summer ballet programs have several professional nutritionists that meet and observe the students.  Especially at the teen level - they often have classes about healthy eating and making good choices.  In fact, in my experience as a ballet instructor - girls who attend summer programs with so much support are less likely to fall into issues than those who do not.   I would contact the program and ask what they do to encourage healthy habits as well as talk to your DD.  She will learn so much and have fun - this is a good thing! :) [/quote]

Amen to this post!

OP, check out the curriculum for this program in more detail. Because you seem to fear the effect ballet might have on your child, I wonder if you are possibly not delving into the details of this program much and have some blinders on about it. Any chance of that? Ask them just what the PP says. You might find that the program is keenly aware of the health issues that many young ballerinas face. Also ask her teachers at the studio she attends here what they think of the issues you raise. They might be familiar with this program and even know some of the teachers at the summer program; if so, they can reassure you.

My daughter also takes extensive ballet. Not quite old enough to apply to summer intensives at ballet companies or the major schools. But I do understand your concern about whether the competitiveness required to get into this program is reflected in competitiveness (and some potential attendant bad habits) during the program. If you've already set a good foundation with her about being healthy, and she has shown no signs of any eating issues or body image issues before now--it's not very likely that an intensive of several weeks will derail her.

If the studio she attends all year is a good one with experienced, solid, realistic instructors, and the atmosphere at the studio is one of cooperation more than competitiveness, then remember: She spends most of her time in that positive atmosphere, and that trumps anything negative she might experience at a summer intensive.

Also, OP, you mention that your child is excelling at "something [I] simply didn't want [her] to excel at." Is there some other reason you don't want her dancing, besides a fear of an eating disorder? Or is there maybe some history for you, personally, with eating disorders or friends of yours who experienced them? Or were there other activities that you, yourself, enjoy and that you had hoped she'd want to do, but she has chosen dance and you feel somewhat hurt by that if you really think about it? I just suggest that because I wondered at the emphasis in your post on just eating disorders, and wondered if there was more behind your worry that you might want to explore. If your daughter is happy when she's dancing --maybe you can reassess why you are fearful of something that makes her happy and actually keeps her fit.

Please don't get tangled up in discussions here about "she'll be living with you forever while she tries to make it as a professional." That's getting way, way ahead of things. Going to a summer intensive is an honor and provides a lot of experience but does not necessarily mean she's headed for a career in dance. Intensives are full of dancers who stop after high school, or continue to dance just for pleasure, or, yes, those who go on to study and teach it, or to dance professionally. No need to fret over that choice now. She's off to have one great, new experience in this one summer, and if you can think through why it bothers you so deeply, maybe you can figure a way to be happy for her, even though you didn't expect her to love dance this much. [/quote]

Options

	Disable HTML in this message
	Disable BB Code in this message
	Disable smilies in this message

Review message

Search Recent Topics Hottest Topics