Learning to Hoop Dance as a Single Mother

Author Heather Doxtater is a single mom who loves to get her hoop on any chance she gets

When someone says to me they do not have time to learn to ‘dance like you do’ I always give a little laugh and say,

“Try finding the time as a single working mom!”

I started out hoop dancing 3 years ago, right as the father of my children left me for the first time. It was a devastating experience but I was fortunate enough to find this tool to help me get through the rough times. Hoop dancing became like a drug to me. Whenever I felt depressed or pissed off, I just picked up my hoop and let it all out. Instead of being destructive and succumbing to the situation at hand, I found a way to better myself and picked up that hoop every chance I could get to it.

Even if it was just for a few minutes. Even if I just picked up the hoop and felt the heaviness of the upward rotation of the isolation. Even if my baby was crying and wanting me to pick her up because I was the only one around. I would learn to lose myself in a hoopful meditation.

I could go on and on about how hard it is to be a parent in general. We give up everything that is ‘me’ to an almost thankless amount of work to make a better them. Where do we find the energy to even look at a damn hoop!

I get that.

There are days where I will even hide my hula hoops away in the closet because I am just not feeling it. But for the most part, it is my drug. I am addicted to feeling good about myself and knowing that I am learning an art form that many know very little of or about it. I get to show people a few tricks and make them smile. That is an addiction in itself!

Another thing is that most hoop dancers I meet in the online community are mothers or fathers themselves! It is a beautiful thing to be able to connect with so many like minded individuals.

Then there are the endless amounts of videos on YouTube or any of the Hoop Dance Groups on Facebook that have tons of tutorials for beginner to advanced hoop dancers. And if you look a little harder, you might even find a hoop happy friend who will let you borrow their practice hoop to get a feel for it. Or just get one of your own from the Shelled Hoops online store. It is worth your time to have a few minutes to yourself even as a single mother.

If you have always loved watching others dance with this flow art or just need something new, then I encourage you to get started without any hesitation. You’ve got the time and the kids will love it too.