Dance Therapy: Recovery

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Dance. Expression. Recovery. All three words can mean everything to a certain individual. Dance is categorized as an art and appeals to a large amount of people. It can be found in settings such as theaters to concerts to being spotted in television commercials. Dance as a performing art can mean as much as a therapeutic art as well. Dance Movement Therapy (DMT) is an alternative medicine, and, according to the American Dance Therapy Association (ADTA), can be defined as “the psychotherapeutic use of movement to further the emotional, cognitive, physical, and social integration of the individual.” DMT is a reliable concept influenced by both the dance and psychology field, and should be used rather than traditional medication. Therapeutic treatments …show more content…
With this in mind, there are several requirements for people who want to teach and carry out DMT. In order to hold the title of “Dance Therapist Registered,” an individual must obtain a total of 700 hours of clinical training while supervised. The next level is titled “Academy of Dance Therapist,” and 3,640 hours must be acquired. All of the hours must be achieved within an agency, institution, or school. To become a dance therapist, a master’s degree is required as well (“Dance Therapy”). DMT offers thousands of people jobs today and is becoming a larger field (“Dance Therapy”). If someone can fulfill these requirements, then they will be serving an occupation that is beneficial to many …show more content…
Even if an individual is used to dancing a large amount of hours a day, the physical demands for dance are intense (Rivers). The demands and amount of exercise necessary improves the health of any individual taking part in dance. DMT is not only helpful physically, but mentally. A person recovering from physical, sexual, or emotional abuse find DMT to be an accommodating way to gain a sense of their own self and body (Bellenir 279). Someone participating in the therapy must focus on his or her body in order to perform the proper movements. Abusive relationships can make emotion and expression difficult for people as well. Dance therapy improves communication skills, and it supports the layout for better relationships (Ekern). Communicating can be done both verbally and physically. The Encyclopedia of Mental Health writes that “many individuals who will not speak about their mental health concerns will indicate something about them with movement” (136). A dance therapist will observe an individual’s movement rather than speaking to them to gain a sense of how that person is