DANCE THERAPY

Another Excellent Expressive Therapy
for Stress Management.

Video: Dance Movement Therapy -- Seniors

Video: Dance Movement Therapy -- Children

What is Dance Movement Therapy?

This expressive therapy strengthens the body/mind connection through body movements to improve both the mental and physical well-being of individuals. For this reason, dance movement therapy is an excellent tool to use for stress management.

As a form of expressive therapy, like art therapy or writing therapy, dance movement therapy is founded on the basis that movement and emotion are directly related. The ultimate purpose of dance movement therapy is to find a healthy balance and sense of wholeness.

Source: Adapted from: Wikipedia: Dance Movement Therapy

Benefits of Dance Movement Therapy.

• Dance movement therapy (DMT) or dance therapy can bring about a renewal of body, mind and spirit, and integrate these parts of the person.


• Dance therapy or DMT brings life, reaches depths, and can bridge verbal and nonverbal modes of communication. It can go to levels unreachable in the 'traditional' talk therapies.



• DMT has been demonstrated to be clinically effective at improving body image, self-esteem, attentiveness, and communication skills.


• DMT is for everyone. It does not specify race, creed, color, gender or age.


• DMT can also reduce stress, fear and anxiety, as well as lessen feelings of isolation, body tension, chronic pain, and depression.


• DMT can enhance the functioning of the body's circulatory and respiratory systems.


• Proponents of DMT claim that it has also been used successfully to help people deal with brain injury, AIDS, arthritis, amputation, stroke, cancer, and a number of other physical ailments.


• DMT has also been shown to benefit adolescent and adult psychiatric patients, the learning disabled, the visually and hearing impaired, the mentally handicapped, and the elderly (especially those in nursing homes).


• DMT increases self-awareness; links feelings, thoughts and actions; helps you express powerful feelings and actions; maximises the ability to communicate; tests the consequences of free expression on others; helps to manage the feelings that obstruct learning; helps improve the development of trusting relationships.


• DMT can give you a sense of achievement.

Source: Adapted from Stason.org, Methods of Healing and Ilene Serlin.



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