Dance Therapy

Ballroom competition, leotards, shoes, tights, recitals – all these are synonymous with dance. However, there is more to explore when it comes to dance. It allows people to prevail over their physical and emotional ailments. Dance therapy lets you enjoy a journey of self-discovery.

The History of Dance Therapy

Isadora Duncan, Doris Humphrey and Martha Graham developed this movement therapy through the sphere of modern dance. They are regarded as pioneers. They broke away from the traditional ballet range and created a movement, which encouraged personal expression, creativity, individualism and spontaneity. Famous thinkers Sigmund Freud and Alfred Adler developed the psychoanalytic philosophical movement, which advanced the use of dance for therapeutic purposes.

The Power of Movement

Dance is the beautiful movement and expression of the human body. Dance is a very potent tool in the development of self. The wonder of Dance Therapy is its effectiveness in allowing one to better appreciate one’s body as a whole. It is believed that physiological and emotional ailments often result in muscle tension. Dance helps release the tension through movement and inner feelings can also be expressed through dance movement. Everybody has their own unique way of moving, and discovering one’s distinctive movement is simply energizing. It is akin to learning body language. Moving innovatively gives you the chance to discover new aspects of the surrounding environment.

What to Expect from Dance Therapy

If you have never danced, it may appear threatening at the start. Dance Therapy is not at all about attending a dance class regularly. Rather it is about experiencing your body without the pressure to achieve or enhance your flexibility. This offers numerous benefits including contributions to creativity, anxiety reduction, and continuous physical development. Nurturing impulsiveness helps the body to speak freely and is a magnificent tool to realize your personal limitations and explore emotions.

Dance Therapy and Autism

The experience of dance can help children with autism open up to interaction with others. Dance has the power to help open the imagination of a concrete thinker. Thus, children who struggle with other modalities of communication can benefit from dance therapy. The combination of dance and music help the brain to reorganize itself. Dance needs multiple types of stimulations including hearing, music processing and performing a movement of that music. Repetition also enables a child’s brain to create new pathways. Social interaction is something difficult for children with autism but when encouraged to dance to rhythms, they can mirror another’s experience and it certainly gives the satisfaction of belonging to a group.

Dance therapy: A Plethora of Activities

Dance, as a simple basic recreational activity, is much more than meager. As a daily recreational activity, dance is fun and a source of motivation, providing a plethora of benefits to development and overall health.

Dance Therapy: Special Needs

Dancing has many benefits, from improving physical health to offering a way to deal with stress. For children with special needs, dance therapy has many benefits including motor skills improvement in social relationships. Children with learning disabilities can have a sense of belonging, as they can improve their social interactions through dance therapy. Research also shows that children who participated in dance therapy have shown improvements in their ability to focus, read and interact.

Dance is a basic form of authentic communication, and thus proves to be an especially effective medium for therapy. Powerful use of movement surely furthers the physical, emotional, social and cognitive integration of the individual.

So, what are you waiting for? Enroll in a dance class with us and get ready for self-exploration through dance therapy!