i blank out when people watch me

im a very confident dancer, but i have got this problem lately...
when i dance and i see that alot of people are watching, there is a big crowd, competition etc... i blank out, forget my routine etc...

it even happens when i got my videocamera once to dancetraining, and as soon as my coach started filming i got a bit stressed that i wanted to do my best on camera, that i started blanking out and forgetting steps etc...

why do this happen? i know my routines inside out, i can do them backwards in my sleep.

lets put it this way, im not a shy person, and i have alot of experience dancing infront of people... but somehow when i feel stress and pressure while dancing, cause i know people are watching, this happens...

in fact i have been keeping postponing my competitions this whole year, because of this fear. cause i know if i will go out there on the competition floor. the pressure, the stress etc is going to eat me alive and i will just blank out like usual...
what do do? any mental training advice?

I am nowhere close to your level of dancing...I suspect I never will be...BUT, I do know that with every fear I have ever had to conquer, including the same problem you describe at a much lower level, I have had to face-down what would happen if that dreadful thing happened and decide that it would be okay...if I go out and space a routine that I know inside out, what is the worst thing that will happen?...I will lose that day...I will disappoint myself and the person with whom I dance...hard...but survivable.

if I am worried about the judges, that will play with my mind...if I am worried about the floor, that will play with my mind...if I am worried about my shoes, that will play with my mind...so I just have to own the worries and then say that I can accept whatever happens ...and then I go out and focus on my assets not my fears...easier said than done...I wish you the best

fascination said:

i am no where close to youer level of dancing...I suspect I never will be...BUT, I do know that with every fear I have ever had to conquor, including the same problem you describe at a much lower level, I have had to face-down what would happen if that happened and decide that it would be okay...if I go out a space a routine that I know inside out...what is the worst thing that will happen?...I will lose that day...I will disappoint myself and the person with whom I dance...hard...but survivable

if I am worried about the judges, that will play with my mind...if I am worried about the floor, that will paly with my mind...if I am worried about my shoes, that will play with my mind...so I just have to own the worries and then say that I can accept whatever happens ...and then I go out and focus on my assets not my fears...easier said than done...I wish you the best

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yes u are right, the best thing is to not take it so serious...
BUT,
its hard... cause i am the type of person who want to impress people when i dance. not like a show off, more like , if i know people are watching its important for me to deliver my best...

i dont know what it is... its the actual stress cause i know people are watching. its like feeling that they are looking at exactly everything you are doing right now... it stresses me... to bits! :S

I am the same way...I try to pretend that they are all loved ones and that they know nothing about dance...it's a huge stretch but it helps

I focus on my partner. It's just her and I in this little bubble as we move around the floor.

Gorme said:

I focus on my partner. It's just her and I in this little bubble as we move around the floor.

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I'm roughly the same... The dance is for my partner first and myself second, everyone else is irrelevant. After that distinction in importance the only other people to notice are the other people on the floor... running into them would lower our enjoyment of the dance. The only real thing that changes in competition is the need to hold yourself up after the dancing ends (and I realize now that I'm going to have to start showing off my partner at the end of the dance, everyone else is doing it).

dansa, usually fear of being judged harshly or fear of failure is behind this type of situation. Perhaps it's true in your case, perhaps it's not.

But if it is, remember you have so much more value than just 10 minutes on a dance floor. Whether or not you "fail", you are enough just as you are. And if you do "fail", remember all champions fail, you cannot "win" without risking that...and I think you will find, more often failure teaches you more than success.

Try to remember, when you are about to perform in front of people, you have a job to do. Focus only on what you can control - let yourself bring to the floor what you've diligently put in to your body through hours and hours of practice.

Latingal,

I always enjoy reading your posts. That's got to make Dansa feel better. It made me feel better. I have blanking out problems sometimes too.

pruthe

thank you pruthe...if I can help at all, it makes my heart glad to.

Hi dansa - I haven't competed, but was having a similar concern about forgetting everything while dancing in front of people (one difference being I had no experience being in front of people because this was going to be the first time I was performing in front of people -- so the concern about forgetting was in my mind -- not in reality as you are experiencing)

I also knew what I was going to dance backwards and forwards and could recite it in my sleep -- so the physical was there. What really worked for me was playing in my mind my dance in two ways -- first as me, picturing things I would see while dancing, such as the crowd, and then as someone watching me, so I was seeing my performance from the audience's perspective.

I pictured it everywhere I had a mental moment free (driving, in line, before falling asleep, etc.) and must have done it at least several hundred times. While I always pictured it going smoothly, my mind did 'inject' on the performance its own fears -- people laughing at me, people ridiculing me, people mocking me, people thinking my dancing was awful -- I didn't intentionally bring these things into it, they just appeared. And each time they did, it was natural to respond with the three things that were most important to me, on a personal level, for this showcase -- successfully getting over an intense, crippling fear; truly enjoying myself while dancing; and proving to myself that no matter what happened (even falling, even forgetting everything) that I would persevere and not give up.

So, what happened, is it eventually felt like there was a protective bubble around me as I danced...not separating me from the audience, but controlling what I allowed to come in -- if I heard applause, I let it in, if I saw what I perceived to be ridicule on anothers face, I didn't let it in. And after running this over in my mind so very many times, it felt like there was nothing that could happen that would throw me off.

It worked like an absolute charm for me...I was more peaceful, more confident, having more fun, then I could have EVER imagined.

Hope it helps.

CANI

I, like everyone else, had this happen at an event where I was dancing to thank all my family and friends who had been supporting me. I spent alot of time afterwards speaking with friends (one of whom is a pro musician), a counselor and my physician. I have chosen to take a very small dosage of xanax before an event. It helps me get out of my head and focus on my dancing. This may not be for everyone, but it has really had a positive change on my competing and dancing at showcases. Hope that helps.

Just remember, Dansa (especially at your level) 99% of the audience is just thinking "Wow, I wish I could dance like that."

thanks for all your answers...

the problem (which i realized today, cause it happened again today) is that when im dancing and i for a second see that there are people watching (cause i tried today just focus on my partner, but as soon as i did a figure which was towards the audience, i saw people looking at us dancing i just blanked out)...
i panic when i notice that people are watching...

maybe having a glass of wine or similar before competition to take the edge off? or that is just stupid?

dansa said:

maybe having a glass of wine or similar before competition to take the edge off? or that is just stupid?

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Go for it! :cheers:

A shot before competition?

Actually TC, if I remember that thread correctly, we came to the conclusion it's wasn't a great idea. Your balance (especially in three inch heels) may be compromised.