OK, I think I mught be re-addicted to blogging again! You have been warned!
Yesterday I mentioned that I had been watching some very inspiring and interesting video clips on Facebook about dance for people suffering from Parkison's Disease. I decided to mention it on the radio show, so did some further research and started to get very interested in my discoveries. Basically the American dance troupe Mark Morris are doing some wonderful work with PD sufferers. They are doing contemporary dance classes which are having a very marked and positive effect on these people. Apparently PD sufferer's brains produce little or no Dopamine (one of the feel good chemicals the brain produces naturally), and dance has been scientifically proven to produce Dopamine. So the participants are finding that during the class their symptoms are reduced or vanish completely, and they also can get several hours of relief from them afterwards. Apart from this obviously beneficial effect, they also said that the reduction of symptoms made them feel 'normal' again for a while, and they also felt part of a community, amongst friends who understood their problems. And of course there was the added benefit of having an incentive to get out and socialise...and it was fun! Parkinson's sufferers have problems with walking, standing, turning, as well as stiffening up and the most common problem of trembling or shaking hands and body. Dance improves your posture and co-ordination, and forces you to think about where and when you place your feet and arms. Other clips re-inforced this idea as they showed PD patients learning Tango, and also Tai Chi, also to positive effect. My research also said that movement and dance can be very beneficial for people who have had brain injury, trauma and strokes, and also for those with dementia. A lot of what I read was just re-affirming stuff I already knew and it was very inspiring to see it in action.
I also think that music has a huge part to play in the beneficial effects these people are experiencing. Music can provide a rhythm to work with, and if you choose your music very carefully, it can evoke positive feelings, memories, and enhance what you do. I have heard that people suffering from strokes or dementia can often remember the words and tunes to songs, even if they have lost most of their other memories. It seems that music and rhythm by-pass other parts of the brain, and I wonder if it activates or is recognised by a very primitve part of the brain that is older than that which we use for speech. We can walk and move almost before we speak as babies, after all.
I've been thinking for some time that I would like to explore the healing and therapeutic properties of Belly Dance, and also other types of physical movement and dance, and this all feels like an inspiring starting point to move from.....Not sure where it will take me, but watch this space!
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