Hannah Bohn started her dance career as a ballet dancer, training in a very intense ballet studio. Now, she has been coaching at the high school level for the last 13 years, at 3 different high schools, and currently leads at the head dance team coach for St. Charles East High School located in Illinois.
Although many people do not view dance as a sport, many times dancers go through the same things that other athletes do. Between school, family, social lives, etc., there are many pressures that dancers face throughout their season that could affect their performance. This week I got to sit down and talk with her about the mental well-being of dancers, and the challenges they face.
Dance is a very unique sport, and being a dancer myself, I am very passionate about the topic of dancer’s mental health. Bohn describes the pressures that dancers can face, both individually and as a team.
Dancer’s can compete as both a soloist and as a part of a team. When competing individually, a dancer can face pressures within themselves to be the best. If something were to go wrong in the dance, there is nobody else to place blame on besides yourself. As a team, there are constant pressures from other people to make no mistakes and be the best that you can be at all times. However, it is unrealistic to be perfect all of the time. Dancers, like other athletes, have outside factors that contribute to their performance.
Bohn continues to go through her personal experience with mental health as a dancer, as well as the experiences she has had with her team. To hear more about Bohn’s experience, click on the link above to watch her interview on YouTube.
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