(Earthy) Dance Therapy
copyright 2008 by Milica
Barjaktarovic
After performing
a massage, I talk to my clients about self-care.
Without self-care, bodywork will not hold for
too long. It provides benefits for the next 2-3
days. The recipient feels good. Then, the old
habits kick in and the muscles tighten again.
Most likely, I will see you next week or
even later, so what do you do in the
meantime?
In the meantime,
we stretch. How? There are many ways. The key is
to RELAX and STRENGTHEN at the same time. It
sounds like a paradox, doesn't it? But it is
possible....
So, I do not send
my clients to a gym. Maybe there is a way
to use the gym in a way that stretches, but I
have not seen too many people use it properly.
What I have seen is people who tighten their
tight muscles even more and further hurt their
lower back.
I send my clients
to a good yoga class, tai chi, qi-gong, hula,
belly dance, or just swimming. (There is African
dance too, for more athletic ones.) All
those are relaxing and strengthening exercises
that provide a great and GENTLE yet highly
effective workout. All of them make the spine
flexible, make the rib cage flexible, and
provide excellent posture. All are Earthy and
connect us to the Great Mystery and our own
bodies and inner wisdom. They are fun. All but
swimming are "wiggley" exercises that
work extremely well to loosen the ribs, and the
pelvis and position the pelvis properly, which
is ABSOLUTELY critical for good posture and
having a healthy body.
Why is good
circulation in the pelvic area so important? For
many reasons. Please read the article on
the importance
of pelvis.
So, what do we
do? We do exercises that stretch the pelvis. We
wiggle and shake and shimmy and make circles and
number eights with the pelvis. That also
stretches the ribs and makes them flexible, and
also adjusts the endocrine system. Have you ever
seen a belly dancer with bad skin? No. They all
have velvet-like complexion. We could be
tempted to attribute it to creams and makeup,
but no, it is not. It is because of movements
that make the entire spine, rib cage, and pelvis
very flexible and fluent. If you look at good
tai-chi or martial arts teachers, their skin
glows, their hair shines, and their eyes
sparkle. In their case, it is obviously not
make-up. It is definitely their practice.
Hula works in a
same way, as well as tai-chi. Tai chi warm-up
includes circling the hips and all that,
bending, rotating the torso, etc.
There are other
modalities, like African dance, but that is more
athletic and is not for everyone.
A crucial thing
about dance therapy is the increased feeling of
self confidence, as we get to be more
comfortable moving in our bodies. That is very
important. We get to feel our pelvis, our hands,
our arms, legs, torso. We get to communicate and
sense our bodies in a way that is healthy and
leads to good health. Tight, painful and
diseased areas are those that somehow got
forgotten and are not in our awareness anymore.
To heal is to bring awareness. Dance does
that.
Last but not
least, it is critical to HAVE FUN. Why? There
are many reasons, as outlined in importance
of having fun. In short, it boils down to:
if it is fun, we do it. If it is not, we don't.
So, why bother even trying something which is
not genuinely interesting and engaging for
us?
Hula has more
spiritual and communal connotations. Belly dance
is suitable for those who love the drama and
show off. African is great for athletes. Tai chi
is about meditation and martial arts. Swimming
is about getting wet and communing through the
medium of the Water.
Dance therapy is
fun for many people. It is music, it is
movement, and music has this uncanny ability to
make us feel like flying. It is elegance,
fluidity, grace, and it is a good workout. It
doesn't require much - throw a CD and dance
around your living room. If you want more, join
a class.
Enjoy! Have
fun!
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