Angela Youngman is currently a junior dance major at Las Vegas Academy of the Arts. She has been dancing since she was 2 years old and attending her studio, Step Up Dance Academy, since she was 8. She explains that, “Dance has impacted my life in so many ways. I’m just able to freely express myself on stage.”
In October of 2024, Angela started to have serious health issues that were keeping her from dancing. She was throwing up everyday, and had to stay home from school and dance. She expressed that it was hard on her dance career because, “I had dance competitions coming up, and I never was there (dance). I had so many doctors appointments, and I had to miss dance for them.”
While Angela was trying to balance her schoolwork, dance, and health, her doctors were trying to find a diagnosis. She had to get several tests done such as endoscopies and bloodwork. Before they found the correct diagnosis, they mistakenly told Angela she was allergic to gluten. From October to December Angela was avoiding gluten, but she was still experiencing sickness. Her sickness caused her to go on home-bound because she wasn’t getting better, and couldn’t stay at school for more than an hour. She had to go back for more testing, and they eventually discovered that Angela was actually allergic to dairy, nuts, and many other foods she had been eating that were keeping her sick. She explains, “I was basically poisoning myself because they didn’t realize it was dairy at first.”
Now that Angela has received the correct medical help, she is now back at school and dancing. She explains that, “This experience made me realize how much I really do love dance.” Angela’s situation proves that you can’t take things for granted.
