Coping strategies for combating chronic pain among professional ballet dancers in Cali, Colombia. Qualitative study

Pain is part of the daily life of ballet dancers. To achieve perfection in the dance, techniques based on repetitive movements that overload different parts of the body are used, which generate pain. The purpose of this study is identify coping strategies used by professional ballet dancers to manage chronic pain.

A qualitative study was conducted using a phenomenological design with a population of 17 professional dancers from a ballet company in Cali, Colombia. The Chronic Pain Coping Questionnaire (CAD) and a open interview with guiding questions were applied as research instruments.

The dancers of the Colombian Ballet Company engage in a physically demanding practice that necessitates continuous movement. The majority of these dancers are under 30 years of age and have been with the company for less than 5 years. Unfortunately, their frequent injuries include sprains, back pain, and disc herniation, often attributed to a lack of strengthening and the imposition of high physical loads. In coping with the pain, the dancers commonly resort to seeking information about their injuries and engaging in self-affirmation of their exceptional abilities.

Dancers get used to pain to continue in professional dance companies. Coping with pain involves developing strategies for self-affirmation and motivation to continue in their profession.