yay stress!

At this time tomorrow I will be on a plane to Rhode Island for 4 days of dance awesomeness at Waking Persephone. Any time I go to a workshop, let alone a workshop I'm teaching at, there's a certain amount of stress involved. This being my first workshop experience (that I'm teaching at) on the East Coast, my old stomping grounds, I am a little extra stressed.
Layering on top of that the workshop I'm teaching here in KC next week, plus the already layers cat-mischief, and the possibility of an art show in May...my body is freaking out a little.

This happens - I get stressed, and my body freaks out.
So I'm doing what I can to be extra nice to myself.

I put the painting aside for the moment - I need to focus on one thing at a time, and the immediate thing is Waking Persephone; not Warrior Weekend, not the cats, not the Art Show.
I'm going to bed early - one of my stress reactions is extreme fatigue. Can't for the life of me pull myself out of bed levels of fatigue. And it's usually complicated with "Can't Get to Sleep" as well.
I'm being extra super careful about what I put into my body - nothing I didn't cook myself; less fat, meat, dairy, and no alcohol. More veggies and fruit, and lots of nettle infusions and ginger tea.
And when that overwhelmed feeling starts hitting me, I sit back for a moment and love on a cat.

Here's the rub - as a dancer, my body is my medium. It is with my body that I create this art.
And unlike my brushes for painting, or my pens for illustration - I can't just go pick up a new one if I don't take care of it properly.
As a asthmatic celiac dancer prone to kidney stones - the choices I make in particular have both immediate and long term effects on my appearance and my overall health.
It's a well documented fact that stress effects the immune system, and that the immune system effects almost every function of your well being - skin tone, energy levels, alertness, mood...make a list.

Super awesome, yes?

It's all just one more piece of the puzzle. It's not just maintaining your costumes, and keeping your makeup fresh, and knowing how to pile your hair. You've got to, as a dancer, take particular care to maintain your medium - your body. Not only technique and conditioning; but proper nutrition, adequate rest, and keeping your stress levels to a minimum.
You've got to feed your body, your mind, and your spirit.