Dance movement therapy is a psychotherapeutic technique that may improve wellness. This intervention is advocated on the basis that the body and mind are interconnected, meaning that anything that affects the body will also affect the mind.

Studies suggest that this therapy may offer several benefits, including reducing depression, improving gait in Parkinson’s disease, and lowering high blood pressure. However, research in this area is still in its early stages. More research is needed to confirm the benefits, however.

What Is Dance Therapy?

The American Dance Therapy Association (ADTA) defines dance movement therapy as the psychotherapeutic use of movement to improve health and well-being. Developed in the 1940s, the intervention is a holistic approach to healing. Many of the early innovators in the field were accomplished dancers who began to see movement as a form of psychological therapy.

How Does Art Therapy Work?

The ADTA explains that dance therapy promotes health by coordinating and unifying all aspects of one’s life, including:

• physical
• mental
• emotional
• social

Underlying the intervention is the belief that the body cannot be separated from the mind. As a result, changes in the body affect the mind and vice versa. The ADTA adds that the below premises also play a role:

• Dance is a means of nonverbal communication. Nonverbal language is as important as verbal language.
• In addition to serving as a means of communication, movement can be expressive, functional, and developmental.
• Movement serves as a tool for both assessment and intervention.