Advice for dancers.

THE PEOPLE I LIVE WITH ARE DRIVING ME NUTS! NEITHER OF THEM ARE DANCERS OR EVEN WORK OUT AT THE GYM SO THEY DON'T GET TIRED BEFORE 1:00 A.M. THEY TRY TO LET ME SLEEP BY KEEPING THEIR VOICES LOW, BUT I WAKE UP ANYWAY AND AM EXHAUSTED THE NEXT DAY. WHAT WOULD YOU SUGGEST I DO OTHER THAN MOVING OUT? IT'S A DECENT APARTMENT AND THEY'RE GOOD PEOPLE.--SLEEP DEPRIVED Many dancers need roommates to help them pay the rent. Besides companionship, the pluses of sharing an apartment include the ability to afford better accommodations with a reasonable commute to auditions, dance classes, and theaters. The minuses range from personality conflicts to fighting over food that mysteriously disappears in the middle of the night. In your case, living with nondancers creates an added stress because they don't require ten hours of sleep, like you do, to recover from strenuous physical exercise. While few dancers manage to get the sleep they deserve, chronic deprivation can lead to burnout, impairing your immunity to fight off colds or prevent injuries. Still, because your roommates aren't creating a ruckus, let alone partying all night, it isn't reasonable to ask them to fall asleep on your time schedule. My advice is to get ear plugs. Sleep is crucial to peak performance. Your body will thank you.

I'M TERRIFIED THAT I'LL NEVER MEET MY TEACHER'S EXPECTATIONS. I WORK AS HARD AS I CAN BUT THERE'S A FEAR IN THE PIT OF MY STOMACH THAT NOTHING WILL BE AS GOOD AS SHE WANTS. I WORRY CONSTANTLY ABOUT WHAT TO DO. IS THIS NORMAL?--UNSURE I hate to say it, but the answer is yes. Most dancers are extremely sensitive about being evaluated. Part of this comes from our training. Pleasing teachers and directors is crucial to making progress, whether it means getting attention or a valuable promotion. As a result, most dancers constantly monitor how they are doing in front of an audience. More pressure to excel comes from being a perfectionist. Few people judge themselves as harshly as dancers, yet no one is perfect. Rather than imagining the worst-case scenario with your teacher, why not keep the focus on you? You can't control your teacher, but you can improve your performance by concentrating on the steps.

THROUGHOUT THE YEAR I ALWAYS QUOTE SOMETHING YOU'VE SAID THAT HAS INCREASED MY UNDERSTANDING OF NUTRITION. THANKS FOR EXPANDING MY KNOWLEDGE. I KNOW I'LL KEEP IT UP WITH YOUR MONTHLY COLUMN IN DANCE MAGAZINE.--EMILY FROM NORTH CAROLINA SCHOOL OF THE ARTS Ever since I became a psychologist, I've wanted to give dancers the best information that's available to help them achieve their goals. I've also wanted to share major strides in the dance community. Right now, a good example is Dance/USA's nutritional guidelines for professional companies. A major goal of this effort is to stem the rising incidence of disordered eating, with the help of health-care professionals from several leading dance companies. The guidelines discourage the ultra-thin look in professional ballet dancers, emphasize the importance of educational seminars for performers and company management, and encourage dancers to lose weight through aerobic exercise. Chris Ramsey, director of external affairs at New York City Ballet, has already addressed the latter issue by arranging for access for the company at New York Sports Club. The more we can do to promote good nutrition and healthy weight management, the less chance there is that dancers will develop eating problems that last a lifetime.

I'VE RECENTLY BEGUN A BFA IN DANCE BECAUSE I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE THE BEST WAY TO SATISFY MY PARENTS' WISHES FOR ME TO OBTAIN A DEGREE, WITHOUT SACRIFICING MY LOVE OF DANCE. THE PROBLEM IS THAT I NO LONGER KNOW WHAT I WANT TO DO FOR A CAREER. I'M VERY CONFUSED AND DON'T KNOW WHERE TO TURN.--JILL FROM QUEENS College students often have no idea how to pick a major much less identify a future vocation. Yet given enough time, most students do figure out their interests and settle on a specific field before graduation. So there's no need to panic. Instead, let yourself enjoy the college experience. There's plenty of time to pick a major that could lead you to an exciting career outside of dance.

I'VE READ THAT DANCERS CAN GO ON TO SUCCEED IN OTHER PROFESSIONS AFTER THEIR CAREERS ARE OVER. IS THIS TRUE?--LESLIE Absolutely! I know many dancers who have become successful writers, lawyers, photographers, and more. There's no limit to what you can accomplish. For more information, contact Career Transition for Dancers at 212/581-7043.

Send your questions to: Linda Hamilton, Ph.D., at 2000 Broadway, PH2C, New York, NY 10023 and read her answers exclusively in DANCE MAGAZINE.

former New York City Ballet dancer Linda Hamilton, Ph.D., is a lecturer, a psychologist in private practice, and author of Advice/or Dancers (Jossey-Bass). Her biography is included in the Marquis Who's Who of American Women. She has been offering advice to DANCE MAGAZINE readers since 1992.