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EXPRESSIVE THERAPIES
USE OF MOVEMENT, BIOENERGETICS & DANCE
'My way back into life was ecstatic dance. I re-entered my body by learning to move my self, to dance my own dance from the inside out, not the outside in.'
- Gabrielle Roth, Maps To Ecstasy.
In ET free movement and dance are often used in the final stages of a session to support release and integration. Free movement may include going for a walk, cushion games (jumping, kicking, building), running or jumping. Free movement is often used by young male clients as a way to reduce tension and to celebrate a good session.
Free dance is also used in the final stages of a session - in an informal way. It can be spontaneous, planned by the client, accommpanied by music, drums of imagined music. After dealing with difficult emotions, some clients enjoy the balancing effect of free dance.
Our bodies carry the strain of the blocked emotional life. Repressed emotional pain is reflected as physical pain or tension. Unexpressed love and generous impulses that have not flowed out harden and begin to feel like their negative opposites. The body's part in repression is physical holding, muscular contraction. Under this armouring though is a healthy core. So freeing the body is a vital aspect of personal growth.
'A fundamental thesis of bioenergetics is that the body and mind are functionally identical: that is, what goes on in the mind reflects what is happening in the body and vice versa.'
- from Lowen & Lowen, The Way to Vibrant Health.
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