Everyone can dance even if they claim that they have “two left feet” or “no sense of rhythm.” Dance sometimes is not just about the routines a dance team does and how in sync they are. Dance can be about expressing emotions and feelings and not worrying about technique and structure. People are starting to see dance as a form of therapy and an enjoyable experience instead of specific moves matching up with certain counts of music.

            Certified dance therapists use dance as a tool and platform to heal the body and mind together. Dance therapy branches off the idea that one’s state of mind can be responsible for the body’s overall health. Dance therapy has been shown to improve self esteem as well as contributing to physical strength and emotional stamina.  

Dance therapy dates back to the medicine men in Native American tribes. Dance became a way for the tribes to participate in self-expression, ceremonial and religious events, and health. These religious rituals and ceremonies translated to a brand new style of movement and dance experience. With the birth of Modern Dance, dancers began to experience and adapt to a connection between mind, body and spirit and the healing effects of dance. Modern Dance created a sense of freedom and positive energy that was expressed through each individual.

            “The body should not and cannot be left out of the therapeutic relationship with the therapeutic equation. In order to receive any form of therapy to enable the mind, soul and heart, the body must be a part of the “therapeutic equation,” explained dance therapist Amber Gray.

Dance offers and provides the obvious benefit of physical growth, but underneath the obvious, emotional growth and challenge oversees the physical dynamics.

            Physical pain is one of the most common reasons that a person would want to participate in dance therapy. Dance therapy combines non-structured dance with stretching and the opportunity to dance freely and express who a person truly is. Many of the physical motions that are used in dance therapy can give the same health benefits created by other forms of exercise. Any type of physical activity is known to amplify special neurotransmitter substances in the brain, called endorphins, which create a sense of well-being or happiness.

Dance offers and provides the obvious benefit of physical growth, but emotional growth is a factor as well.

“I think dance gives you an opportunity to express your emotions. It doesn’t resolve anything but it gives you that opportunity to express how you feel,” commented junior Emily Martin.

Dance therapy has been demonstrated to be clinically effective at improving body image, self-esteem, and attentiveness.

“I got more confident from taking dance classes and doing dance team,” added senior Coleen Hill.

Placer Dance Team also helped Martin with performing and her confidence while performing in front of a crowd.

“Placer Dance Team really helped me perform in front of my peers, like at rallies,” added Martin.

Mental benefits can include an improvement on how the patient looks at himself or herself and the mental connections they develop or improve with others.

“Dance is a way to get your mind off things because you’re focusing on something else instead of what is bothering you,” expressed Martin.

Dance therapist, Christina Devereaux, has experienced the mental benefits of dance therapy first-hand through her students.

“I’ve seen clients be able to get close to another person, to be able to trust.  I’ve seen them become more comfortable in their skin, in their bodies.  I’ve seen them make connections with things they weren’t even aware were there,” Devereaux shared.  

Dance therapy can provide numerous benefits under the emotional category. Many patients or students of dance therapy classes seek emotional help and improvement through the classes. Some people may have experienced trauma in their lives, which they suppress emotionally but still carry with them in their physical body; dance movement therapy can help these people to release themselves from burdens. Emotional pain is at times the hardest pain to overcome because it is held close at heart. Dance allows one to free from emotional pain and rebuild a stronger heart and emotional stamina. Dance therapy benefits the entire body as well as physical pain one might be experiencing.

Dance can consume the minds and hearts of a great deal of people all around the world. Breast cancer patients and other patients who suffer from varieties of other illnesses that are undergoing other treatment seek dance therapy as a secondary and additional therapy and healing process.

In one recent study, a group of breast cancer survivors took part in a twelve-week dance therapy and movement class. The women who had dance therapy showed better range of motion in their shoulders than before. Dance therapy is beneficial in many mental and physiological ways and has the ability to relieve stress and show self expression.