Dancing Your Way to Connectedness
Alienation is "the state or experience of feeling isolated, detached, separated, divided, cut off", the sensation of being out of sync with the reality around us, something all of us have felt at one time or another, and increasingly so in the individualistic, ego-driven society we live in today.
Now close your eyes for a moment and try to remember the last time you danced with other people and really enjoyed it. Maybe it was at a party, a dance class or an evening out with your friends. You might have been dancing tango, hip hop or jazz, that doesn't matter. Try to remember the way you felt, how you connected to the people around you. Remember how happy you felt? The way your sorrows and worries seemed to vanish into thin air? You were overcome by a deep sense of belonging, feeling as one with the world and the people around you.
Scientific research has recently shown dancing leads to bonding, and bonding leads to a happier, unified, more fulfilling life. One of the reasons for it is that dancing, just like any other form of physical exercise, releases endorphins, the hormones responsible for feeling high and lively. However, it does much more than that.
"There is something special about matching the same behaviors at the same time." Says Paul Reddish, a social psychologist at the Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand. Studies show that dancing the same steps and moving in sync with others creates a sense of connectedness and wholeness where the perception of the self is blurred into a sense of community which ultimately dissolves social barriers and ignites deep, meaningful relationships. Research also shows that sharing a high level of physical exertion is also responsible for bringing people together and encouraging mutual trust - even if the movements are not in sync.
Bonding is all about sharing, and that is what dancing together with other people is all about: sharing our movements and our energy, sharing our joy from our heart and soul, giving and receiving, ultimately sharing our very selves, moving and feeling as one.
If you would like to dance your way closer to someone, we have couples and group lessons as well as social dances. Visit us here for more information.