Movement as Mind Medicine: Dance is the Ultimate Mental Well-Being Boost

Photo Courtesy of Teacher Terrel

When my daughter was thirteen, her dance teacher lifted her leg too forcefully and tore her hamstring. It was only a few days before the spring show. She could not walk, let alone perform. 

When I told my daughter how sorry I was and empathized with how frustrating it must be to sit on the sideline for a show she’d spent months preparing for, her answer and resiliency astounded me. “It’s okay. The work was fun; learning and improving—that’s what was important. Spending time creating with my friends was worth it by itself.” 

Fast forward to summer after a couple sedentary months of recovering.

This child, known for her kindness and for always being grounded and thoughtful, became disagreeable, and I thought, “This must be a late grumpy-teenage phase.” But once she got back to the studio and started dancing, her good mood and patience instantly returned. 

Over the years, I’ve seen study after study citing the positive effects of dance on mood, creativity, social satisfaction, and even reduced suicide rates. Research shows that positive outcomes happen quickly, but unfortunately, those outcomes don’t last as long as we’d wish. 

Our bodies are meant to move.

We are happier and healthier moving. Any physical activity results in a lower risk of mental health disorder, a lower risk of anxiety, depression and even ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) (New York Times “Physical Fitness Linked to Better Mental Health in Young People”). But the BEST form of movement for overall mental and physical health is dance. If you want to convince yourself to dance, check out the New York Times article “Is Dancing the Kale of Exercise?”.  

Dancing is a delightful, low-pressure social activity that yields positive effects not only on the brain and body but also on emotional well-being. I’ve witnessed students overcome their fears and support one another in recitals, and the pride after they perform a 3-minute piece was surreal to experience. Dancing is a highly accessible social activity that encourages commitment to something greater than yourself. Dance is hard to learn and sometimes stressful to perform, and that results in a tremendous sense of accomplishment and bonding.

Along with a sense of accomplishment, dance offers a plethora of goodness.

When kids dance, they experience endorphins—which are literally referred to as feel-good hormones. This surge of positive emotions helps reduce stress, anxiety, and depression. Dancing also provides an outlet for pent-up emotions, allowing children to process their feelings. I’ve talked with many young adult dancers over the years, and their stories often sound so similar: “Dance was my second home.” “Dance let me express myself even though I was shy.” “Dance helped me process and release a traumatic situation.” “Dance gave me a sense of purpose and an outlet for creativity.” “My dance studio was my second family.”

Research shows that dancing offers a multitude of advantages across all age groups. Academically, it correlates with better grades, improved memory, heightened attention, and enhanced comprehension skills. Physically, dancing creates new neural pathways, enhances coordination, strengthens hearts, lungs, and bones, contributes to better posture, flexibility, and agility, and lowers the risk of injury. It also fosters enhanced social-emotional skills, uplifts mood, reduces stress, anxiety, and depression, and encourages an understanding of others’ perspectives

Dance keeps kids engaged in positive activities (and out of trouble),

and dance teachers can play a role in encouraging children to prioritize their physical well-being. Studios often offer workshops on nutrition and self-care topics such as stress management or cross-training. These self-care aspects also help kids better manage their emotions.

As an adult, being part of one big dancing world is a gift I hold close to my heart. I know I can go anywhere, find dancers, and make new connections. Luckily, every time I tried to leave dance behind, it pulled me back. I suppose that’s the power of dance. When I hear about these awful things happening in the world, I think to myself, if only they’d discovered dance. 

For parents of young children, I encourage you to find a dance class in whatever style you think will work best for your child: tap, ballet, hip hop, African, Irish, Flamenco, folk, social, etc. And if formal classes aren’t possible, make time to dance at home together (for ideas, check out https://onceuponadance.com/resources). 

I’ve been a dance mom for 24 years.

Yes, pointe shoes are ridiculously expensive. Yes, I missed my kids who spent significant chunks of their lives at the studio. Yes, we dedicated many weekends to performances and occasional competitions. Yes, our holidays revolved around Nutcrackers. Would I have traded it in? Definitely not! 

Dance is a symphony of life skills, learning, friendship, exercise, belonging, joy, and achievement. It teaches kids to relevé into resiliency, leap and love, and twirl triumphantly.

Teacher Terrel, a dance mom and teacher for decades, created kids’ dance books featuring her daughter and other whimsical characters. Learn more at www.DanceStories.com, or for tips for your child’s first dance class, visit www.onceuponadance.com/ready-set-dance.