What do you think I should do?

[lovlie1]

Here is the deal. Before i left for the Navy I use to live in Florida and was advid at attending all pow wows that I could. I had just got permission to dance jingle maybe a year before leaving. Well needles to say I love the dance. To me there is nothing more precious sounding then jingles hitting upon each other. While in the Navy I didn't have much time to go to pow wows let alone sewing(hard to do on a ship) and yes I fell a little bad and some how like I neglected my culture.

Not only because of being in the NAV did i stop dancing, but being of mix ancestry it is hard also because there are a lot of people who think that you are suppose to look like some plains ndn as well as other natives acting snobbish. Needless to say nine years later here I am. My grandmother had a heart to heart with me and said to let no one deny me no ndn, no black nor no white!

Well this is the Q. you see I recently came down with Lupus. I want very much to dance jingle again but I am a little weary of the condition of my legs. Yes I know the full story of the jingle and how it is a healing dance. It is not that I have no faith in the dance, I guess i just lack the faith in legs!

What should I do?

T Y
Little sister with two bad legs

[sarah_sarah_sarah]

If I were in your place I'd dance. But thats just me. Go for it!:D

[peekaboo]

dance til it hurts. be die hard dancer and :american: Be all that you can be i know thats army but cloce enough.

[lovlie1]

LOL, and TY that won't take long but I will keep dancing past the pain! I can not even remember the Navy saying, isn't that too sad! LOL oh well

[CactusButt]

Lovlie1,
I think you should be careful. Dance, but listen to your body. Lupis is a serious matter, it isn't just like being tired. You need to take care of yourself. Since you love to dance, you should. In between Powwow's and practicing I would reccomend lifting weights to strengthen your muscles, as well as eating healthy, taking vitamins and any prescribed medications to help w/ your Lupis. Also, instead of asking us...which is cool, you should really ask your doctor. If your doctor is not familiar w/ the Jingle dance explain the motion and the parts of your body that you move when dancing and then listen to the advice of your doctor. If your doctor is a jerky butt and says no way Jose, maybe you could consult a physical therapist who has a knowledge of Lupis, and works with patients with Lupis.

I really want you to be happy though and since dancing makes you happy I want you to dance, I also want you to be able to dance for many years so if you are dancing and you get sore or are too exhausted don't hurt your body. Nobody will look down on you, and if they do tell them I said.....


:Yell :Yell :Yell :Mad Leave her alone!:Yell :Yell :Mad

[Singing Eagle]

^ some great suggestions!

Be sure to be mindful of your condition and take good care of yourself. Be sure to exercise and weight train - you could also look into massage therapy to increase circulation in your legs.

[peekaboo]

whats lupis any way?

[lovlie1]

TY

Thanks CactusButt and SingingEagle for the great advice. It just so happen I do have a jerk for a doc, through the VA! I walk everyday and I try to swim at least once a week. I take Lupus very serious, because I have seen and felt first hand what it can do. But you're right I love to dance, perhaps I should stick with tradish until I feel more confidence!

[CactusButt]

Re: TY

Originally posted by lovlie1
Thanks CactusButt and SingingEagle for the great advice. It just so happen I do have a jerk for a doc, through the VA! I walk everyday and I try to swim at least once a week. I take Lupus very serious, because I have seen and felt first hand what it can do. But you're right I love to dance, perhaps I should stick with tradish until I feel more confidence!

Hey no Prob!

I still think you should contact a Physical Therapist. I have a friend who has Lupis and she works w/ a Physical Therapist. She doesn't dance but is very active, she works full time and is on her feet all day. When she first got it she got some ankle and wrist weights that were like 1lb. or something and began wearing them for like 1 hour at a time w/ 2 hr. breaks to strengthen her muscles, maybe you should try something like that? Also, ask your doctor if taking extra calcium would help or hurt. sometimes too much calcium can cause a calcium build up that is really damaging. If you love to jingle then jingle just do it sparingly like only dance one song per Powwow or whatever. And have someone on hand who can help you w/ rubbing your legs down afterwards.

Be Careful, but don't let anything stop you from doing something you love! :Angel2

[j_m2004]

My dad recently found out that he is diabetic, he is still planning on dancing. We find that getting his pow-wow regalia together makes him excited and forget that he has a sickness. I think i may have artheritis(hereditary)(tests not ready yet) and I am still planning on dancing womens tradish.
SO-- if u think u should dance ..dance!!!!!! DOn't let anyone stop u... just gives us more encouragment to just keep on goin-.

[ndnkidz_5]

I have lups too, and yes it has changed my life....one day I was running dacning ect.... then one day my jiots swelled up and I could not move....come to find out it was lupus. I try not to have it change my life.....but it is hard. On a good day I forget I have it, and I do the things I did before....only later to reget it the next day....because I aggravate my joints and they do not like that! for me I just do what i can, and stop when I feel I can do no more, before whenI ran or danced i would push through, but now I learn to stop and just do a little, I would run it by your doctor...let them know what you want to do. Now I make dress and bead work, fo rmy kids and watch them dance, not as fun, but I still get exicted when I make an outfit even if it's not for me.

[Soohkiisimsstaan]

The Circle is Healing

Hey Girl, take care of yourself! Lupus can be life threatening if you do not care for yourself properly. I'm all for sticking with the Tradish which would allow you to continue benefiting from being a part of The Circle. Ditto what the others said. See the doc, listen to the doc, find a good PT and massage therapist, watch your diet, etc. Walk in beauty...

[~*~ShanLyn~*~]

Lupus is really serious...just make sure you consult a doctor about it all.
But i think its a really great thing.
My uncle passed away from lupus, but he fought for 15 years with it, and in that time he did everything he could do at powwows. In his last year he began dancing again, and though he was very sick, there was just something about dancing that helped take the pain away, even if it was just for a short period of time, and he was happy!

I lost an Aunt and an Uncle from complications from lupus. Just take care of urself first and foremost, and do whatever it is to make urself happy!

[lovlie1]

Lupus is really serious...just make sure you consult a doctor about it all.
But i think its a really great thing.
My uncle passed away from lupus, but he fought for 15 years with it, and in that time he did everything he could do at powwows. In his last year he began dancing again, and though he was very sick, there was just something about dancing that helped take the pain away, even if it was just for a short period of time, and he was happy!

I lost an Aunt and an Uncle from complications from lupus. Just take care of urself first and foremost, and do whatever it is to make urself happy!

TY very much i try my hardest even though I have my bad days!

[lovlie1]

Thanks everyone for the great encouragment! It is good to hear from folks who at least know what Lupus is! I get tired of telling folks here where I live what it is. To sum it it up I just tell them it is like this inside of my body everday or at least it feels this way----> :rtf: