Dance Movement Psychotherapy
Dance Movement Psychotherapy uses movement psychotherapeutically to promote the cognitive, physical, social and
emotional integration of the individual. It is a NICE (National Institute of Clinical Excellence) recommended psychotherapeutic intervention for Schizophrenia and the evidence base and use of dance movement therapy is building for other diagnosis, with plans for recognition as an intervention for depression and anxiety, medically unexplained symptoms, dementia and autistic spectrum disorders, all areas in which GP’s struggle to provide for outside of psychoactive drug interventions. Dance movement psychotherapy has been practiced effectively for years within mental health in UK and globally.
How it works
The underlying principles of dance movement psychotherapy assume that your mind and body are interconnected and any changes that happen in the mind effect the body and vice versa. Thoughts, feeling and actions interact forming patterns of behaviour when reacting to life events. Sometimes you may feel stuck, out of kilter, unaligned or detached and this is a time when a dance movement psychotherapist can help you to develop and move through periods of difficulty. A common misconception is that dance movement therapists are either physiotherapist, dance teachers or relaxation practitioners, but they differ: At the core of the dance movement therapist practice is psychology and the body as a source of knowledge and healing, dance movement therapists are trained in somatic body/movement systems and psychotherapy interventions.
