Lisa’s Journey Into Movement

Dance as a healing art form? How is this so?  I’ve been teaching dance as a healing art form for 17 years in Marin County, California. Rediscovering dance in my mid-thirties was extremely healing. It provided me with an artistic vehicle for my  emotional expression.  Divorce and awakening were simultaneously tearing me apart and reconnecting me with my true inner nature during my thirties. 

As a small child, I whirled and twirled with the encouragement of my mother who also adored dancing. Movement always made more sense to me than talking or sitting at a desk listening to the teacher.  Due to extreme dyslexia though, I was not accepted into dance classes. Ballet was especially mortifying as I would do the movements in the reverse direction and the instructor thought I was being contentious. In the long run this rejection from mainstream dance study pushed me into exploring dance on my own. It probably also saved me from many injuries that are caused by the rigid requirements of ballet and it’s abusive way of manipulating the body into unnatural positions. Hence I’m 54 years old, still dancing up a storm and constantly discovering new movement patterns within my body.

So for many years, I danced on my own in my room, at clubs and rented studios in order to map out my dance journey. During the chaotic shift in my 30’s, dance suddenly became a necessary part of my healing. It opened ways inside for me to express my turmoil and joy all at the same time. Without this art form as a way to live through the relationship changes going on in my life, I would have had a nervous breakdown. The internal pressure and confusion was immense and dance provided the release valve. And bless those endorphins!