I saw a Twitter post this morning about The Psychologist’s interview with Dr. Peter Lovatt about his Dance Psychology.
Being a survivor, much of my life as been spent distancing myself from my body and its sensations. I had a love-hate relationship with my body through high school, wanting to love it but hating how I felt in my own body.
Sports helped me because they got me moving and using my body in a positive way. But it was more a control thing of how I could get my body to perform to a certain level.
Once I found yoga, I started to really become open to experiencing my body as a positive part of my life, something to be nurtured and loved instead of denied and hated.
I wish I had known about Dr. Lovatt and his Dance Psychology earlier! I think it would have been very helpful to consider my body in this way.
You can check out his Happy Dance and try it for yourself. It’s a lot of fun!
“I have seen this transformative power in men and women, old and young. It has nothing to do with how good a dancer someone is, nor is it about any particular style of dance. I have seen it in people dancing freestyle in nightclubs, or performing ballet and other classical forms such as Indian dance.
What all these have in common is that they involve movements that require communication between the brain and the body; movements that connect people with themselves and with others.“
Listen to Dr. Lovatt describe his Dance Psychology on talk.dance: Interview with Peter Lovatt re: Psychology & Dance
He has delivered several TED talks about his research and findings on body movement and how it impacts people’s psychology. Google him to find more talks!