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Last edited by dreambig; 09-24-2008 at 04:54 PM.
Youll get used to it babe. This job is VERY hard on your body not only physically but mentally also. This is why youre waking up even tho you are exhausted... your mind is most likely still going a million miles an hour to process everything thats going on!
Also, youll need black out curtains. Youre sleeping during the day and even a little bit of light can wake you up. This used to happen to me. Pretty much as you explained because the light would wake me up and then Id be a tired cranky bitch all day.
I dont have advise on energy (Im a coffee girl) but there are girls on here with great natural resources - try to use the search option!
It seems like it's more mental fatigue over physical fatigue.
Exercise. Hitting the gym and working out is the best way to build up your endurance. Make sure you do it more in the beginning of the day so that it doesn't keep you up.
If you are having difficulties falling asleep you might want to see a doctor about that (but be very careful with perscription sleep aids.) You also should rule out that have a cardiac arithmyia since you mentioned your heart beating fast (it's most likely the systems of a panic attack but you just want to make sure.)





I experience the same exact things that you described.
The physical exhaustion eases up pretty fast, but waking up early and not being able to go to sleep is taking longer. Changing your sleep schedule is hard for your body to get used to. Also once you get used to the job it's not nearly as exciting or interesting to think about once you get home, that you'll just go to bed.
Recently I've been going out to eat with my bf and only talk briefly about my night at work and then move on. That way when I go to bed I have more thoughts that I'm used to thinking about (like my puppy, t.v., funny things that happened at the restaurant) going through my head when I'm waiting to fall asleep.
just don't wowrk three days in a row!!! I've been dancing for a year now, and I STILL can't do that. I can do two days at most.
Work every other day, definitely with a spacer recovery day in between
It's nothing you're doing wrong like Audrey said, you'll get used to it. The first months of dancing is hell on even the most fit person. Your body feels like you got ran over by a truck...I don't know one person that didn't go through it. As for the mental exhaustion, it does get better. However, I don't think that ever goes away completely. I've been dancing many years now and enjoy it, and I can not even work more than five days in a row without turning into a raving bitch.
Keep your head up, stay positive and it'll be no time till your body adjusts.
Thank you guys for all the tips and advice. I guess I'll just wait and see how my body adjusts!![]()
yes i was limping and bruised the first couple weeks i danced. it was hell.
wait till your pinky toes take on terrifying shapes. after 6 years now my pinkie toes are so hideous from being mashed into those shoes.





Baths with epsom salts! And cut back on energy drinks or soda, because those might what are giving you the 9 am panic.
Also-3 days in a row makes me dead. I did 11 days in a row once (5 hours shifts). I made a lot of money, but nearly died every night.![]()
yoga, meditation or pilates and blackout curtains!!
Oh ma gawd...11 days. Wow! I really want to work 4-5 days a week, but I just don't know how I'm going to do it. I'm going to try out all of the tips you guys gave me. Thanks a bunch.









The "heart racing/insomnia" thing is actually a pretty common effect of suddenly ramping up exercise level a lot. The first time I went to a gym and lifted weights, I had this liek whoa. Or rather, I went to the gym around noon, completely crashed out early in the evening, and then woke up like a shot at *midnight* and couldn't get back to sleep.
Part of it is that exercising at a time which is not your normal metabolic peak will try to change your whole metabolic cycle! My normal metabolic peak is around early evening, so when I did that first workout at noon, my body said, "oh hai, it's eight o'clock" and then when it was actually eight, said "oh it's four in the morning" and of course because it wasn't, the sleep just confused things further, I think. So watch for your body schedule changing.
When I first started I worked MWF. I worked out every morning, drank an energy drink before work. If you work nights, then I'd take a nap before you have to go to work. Power naps really help.
On your days off, do a light workout and RELAX.
You will get used to it. Some days, esp. if I work 3 or 4 days in a row, I have one day when I do absolutely NOTHING. It's OK to do. You need the rest.


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Last edited by sashabunny; 12-22-2008 at 11:57 AM.








Don't try to work that much in the beginning. You need to adjust to the job first. I have been dancing for a year and a half and I don't even do 3 nights in a row, except on occasion such as this week as friday is a public holiday so ill be picking up an extra night.
Are you Aussie? Im just guessing coz u used the word "bloody" and it's something Aussies or even Brits usually say.
I had trouble relaxing and falling asleep when I started. I had that restless leg shit where u cant stop moving your legs before i fell asleep. I dont get it now.
There are many stereotypes about the industry that I work in. Sometimes they can be true but human beings are very diverse creatures and cannot be pigeon-holed into one category.
Some of the most effortlessly beautiful, kind, intelligent, successful, motivated, driven and ridiculously hilarious women that I have ever met have been dancers. I've met the best friends that I've ever had in this industry.
Try to wind down and process everything on the way home.
This was easy for me because I was staying with the chicky that got me started with dancing in the first place. So we would chat about all the infinite details on the way, by the time we got home there was nothing left to do but eat and then Zzz Zzz Zzz
Two days on and one day off worked pretty well for the both of us?? Don't be afraid to PLAN a night off here and there (this is different from the TRAP of going meh.. don't feel like it tonight.)
And yeah it does settle. Your body gets stronger. Your mind isn't racing with all the new information. It's a simple thing??But to be sucessful at it (or just satisfy any OCD/perfectionist tendancies) there are a few areas you need to be aware of and then master. Phew! That'll keep you occupied!! But you start to get a handle on it and it starts to fall into place by itself
And then it gets more peaceful![]()
Thanks ladies. It's nice to know too there are others going through the same pain. I am getting a ton more exercise, so that makes sense about the heart/racing insomnia thing. I guess I wanted to work Thu-Sat because I am assumed weekends are the best. But reading around the board, I see that Sun/Wed nights are just as good. I'm going to try to break my nights up, or just work less often. I've also downloaded relaxing music and I'm going to get a sleep mask! I am used to falling asleep early and waking up early, so I think there are just a lot of things do to for the adjustment. Thanks again, you guys are great!
Oh, no, I say bloody a lot from visiting London & my brother says it all the time. Got into a habit of it.![]()
I am the same way. Some girls can work 7 days a week and be fine, but I've never been able to work 2 days in a row, with a maximum of three days a week.
Even though you may get home at a relatively decent time from working (2-3 a.m.), your mind is so awake from working, you can't possibly expect yourself to go to sleep right away! Think about it: 8 hours + of loud music, loud people, etc, etc.
Your body will adapt fairly quickly to the new motions you're going through, but it will adapt at the rate you allow it to do so. Start out working LESS, and your body will have time to recover after working. Then, if you can handle it, you can add another shift to your schedule.
Some girls (myself included) even experience a phenomenon called 'sleep dancing' when they first start dancing. I used to wake myself up from sleeping because I was unconsciously touching myself and moving around (while still laying down) as if I were still dancing. Though this is, of course, amusing, it also reveals how your body can't just go from dancing to sleeping in no time.
Furthermore, stripping is such a unique job, and there is SO much to think about/deal with (nasty customers, judgment from friends/family, drama with other strippers) when you're first beginning. So give yourself time to adjust, and don't feel pressured! Everyone has different rates of adaptation.
YOU WILL ADJUST!
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