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Dance It Out
Street Dance as
Therapy

Street Dance Therapy
As dancers, we all know that feeling of coming out of a dance class energised, on a total high with a huge smile across your face. But what about your mental health? 

 

I’m writing this article whilst in isolation as my partner, Rob, has Covid. It’s only been 3 days since I last danced and already, I’m climbing the walls and feeling a little tetchy. The pandemic has been a test on all of us but for me it has highlighted just how important dance is for my mental health and my clients have echoed this too. Yes, I taught online dance classes, and this definitely served a purpose. It gave us routine (and routines), a chance to see friendly, familiar faces and to do some exercise a few times a week. But it doesn’t compare to the mental high you get from dancing with a group of people you genuinely love to be around. 

 

Not many people know this, but I have suffered from depression. Years of therapy and antidepressants have helped me overcome and avoid those dark clouds, but it took some work. 

 

Attending a dance class and standing in front of a mirror when you feel mentally shit may be the last thing you are inclined to do. 

 

And that’s certainly how I felt some of the time. But I didn’t have much choice as it’s my job. However, in retrospect, I’m certain that having to dance kept me in a more positive mindset and I’m lucky that my job continues to make me feel physically and emotionally better. 

 

During those low moments, that high I got from dance, even if momentarily, rebalanced me. Admittedly, I needed more than dance to help me. But there is no denying, I would have been in a darker place had I not had the sanctuary of the dance floor, and the regular contact with my awesome clients who came (and continue to come) religiously to my classes.

It turns out, there’s a bit of science backing the notion that dance improves our mental health. There are many benefits of dance supported by research. 

 

Dance improves your heart health, overall muscle strength, balance and coordination, and reduces depression. These benefits have been seen across a variety of ages and demographics. 

 

A research paper by Anna Duberg, a physical therapist at Örebro University Hospital and a doctoral candidate at Örebro University in Sweden, looked at more than 100 teenage girls who were struggling with issues like depression and anxiety. 

 

Half of the girls attended weekly dance classes, while the other half didn’t. The results showed the girls who took the dance classes improved their mental health and reported a boost in their mood. Amazingly, the positive effects lasted up to eight months after the dance classes ended. 

 

The study concluded that dance resulted in a very positive experience for participants and contributed to new healthy habits. 

 

But there is no age limit to the benefits of dance and mental health. There have been many studies of senior adults (65+) who have reported improved mood and cognitive skills after taking dance lessons. Not to mention increased strength and agility. There is also strong evidence that dance reduces your risk of dementia.

The science behind dance as therapy

Street Dance Therapy Lady Giving You Hand

The dance floor is a home from home

Street Dance Therapy Lady Dancing at Dawn

Most of us know that exercise releases the happy hormones but for me, and many others that attend regular classes, it’s more than chemistry. Aside from the benefits of movement and music, dancing also allows us to become more connected and social. Making new friendships or reconnecting in an old relationship can be a wonderful side effect of dance. These social interactions can go a long way in improving mood and mental health. 

 

When, on a regular basis, you see people that ‘get you’ then you fulfil a human desire to belong. My clients are very different people of different ages, different stages in life, different kinds of jobs, but we share a kindness and a fondness that has grown organically over the years through our love of dance. We often socialise after dance and the time we spend together is fluid and seamlessly fun. I see a lot of acceptance and lack of judgement. 

 

Maybe because we see each other at our most vulnerable; learning something new, putting ourselves completely out of our comfort zone and sometimes, or often, messing up. 

 

Yes, dancing can be hard, but there is a sense of achievement in a/ just turning up, b/learning something challenging and new c/ mastering the moves.  

 

I’ve experienced how being away from each other during Covid has been an unsettling period and the moment we reconnected on the dance floor felt like coming home. 

 

Are you ready to dance?

 

xxx Thalia

Choreographer & Dance Teacher

Neon Fuel Dance

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