Pointe risks and consequences?

Question:

Pointe risks and consequences?

I've been doing pointe for six months and I absolutly love it, but I'm worried about what it will do to my feet in the long run. I'm serious about my dancing, but I'm not going to pursue it as a career. How bad is it for my feet, ankles, knees, etc to do pointe? I'd ask my teacher, but she is passionate about her students and wouldn't tell us anything negative because she wants us to keep dancing.

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: There are risks in dance whether you are en pointe or not. You can tear ligaments, blow knees, even break/fracture bones without ever going en pointe. For those of us who love the art, the risks are worth taking for the enjoyment and excitement of performing.

When en pointe, your most common risks include bunions (depending on how your metatarsals are structured), ingrown toenails, stress fractures, pulled/strained ligaments, tendonitus. Other risks can include arthritis if you dance for many years.

The best way to minimize your risks is to take extra care of your feet. They are the major part of your art if you are en pointe. You wouldn't just leave your pointe shoes out in the rain in the drive way to be run over, would you? Then you should treat your feet even better than your shoes.
-Stretch your feet before and after class.
-Always do your strengthening exercises, even if you think your feet are strong enough, keep them up.
-Make sure your pointe shoes are fitted properly by a professional, incorrect fittings may cause injury.
-Don't try to attempt steps en pointe that you are not ready for, make sure you work up to each step properly on 3/4 pointe first so you don't injure yourself just because you're impatient.
-Pamper your feet, soak them and relax after a hard class.
-Go get a pedicure and massage every once and a while.
-Visit a podiatrist who understands the needs of a ballet dancer. You may have to call around through the phone book and ask before you find one. (sometimes you can get a recommendation form other dancers or by calling a professional company and ask what dr. they use) They can show you the proper way to trim your toenails to minimize the risk of ingrown toenails.

I danced en pointe for years, the worst I suffered was several ingrown toenails, and tendonitus in one arch. Oh and kind of ugly looking feet with lots of callouses. But all well worth it for the fulfillment and satisfaction of performing the most beautiful art form I know.