Dance and Mental Health

Dancing into Better Mental Health

Dancing is more than a physical activity. It is more than performance. 

It is a way to improve mental and emotional health. 

When I started my journey into dance, I had no idea the impact that it would have on me.

Physical effects are obvious. The mental effects are immeasurable!

Dance challenges me. I describe the feeling when I first started dancing as if I could feel the neurons in my brain creating new paths. So many different areas of the mind are engaged to dance. 

Dance itself is a challenge to improve yourself - to improve who you are as a person. 

Dance is an expression of self. It can be an escape from stress, an expression of sadness or joy, and a medium through which to process the wide range of human thoughts. 

May is National Mental Health Awareness Month. Particularly with our recent world-changes due to COVID-19, many are struggling with mental health issues. Some are experiencing deeper stress, anxiety and depression than they have before. Others are feeling the “extra” on top of their daily struggles. 

Dance does not “fix” my mental illnesses. But it does give me a way to grow, to manage them, and to move through and keep going.

I hope you are finding ways to handle the stress of the world. You can always dance anywhere! No skill is required! Just allow your soul to emanate from your body. That is dance. 

Keep dancing forward!

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