Both dance and art (or arts) therapy use the creative realm to heal. It is a form of expressive therapy which combines the creative process with psychology to help individuals express themselves. This promotes emotional/personal development/well-being, enhances cognitive function, helps individuals resolve issues and manage behaviours/feelings, and supports healing. Art therapy unlocks the potential to reduce stress, improve one’s emotional state, increase awareness and self-esteem. To do so, it may use a wide range of materials and techniques, which offers the option to include two- or three-dimensional art making, as well as movement and more.
According to the Dance Movement Therapy Association of Australasia, dance therapy is ‘the relational and therapeutic use of dance and movement to further the physical, emotional, cognitive, social, and cultural functioning of a person’. In short, the aim is to achieve true well-being on all levels. In movement psychotherapy, your body is the key to facilitate profound healing of feelings which might be trapped within. Dance therapy is based on physical-psychological and scientific knowledge and it emerged as a profession in the US in the 1960s.
What both approaches have in common is that you don’t need any prior knowledge to participate, i.e. you don’t have to be a dancer (or even know anything about dancing) to benefit from dance therapy, and you don’t have to be an artist to do art therapy.
As you can see from reading the definitions above, the lines between art therapy and dance therapy are rather blurred, and this is often mirrored in my sessions. While the focus may be on dance therapy, I often bring in elements of art making and vice versa. I find that this flexibility enhances both healing and growth for my clients.
