MOVEMENT AND DANCE THERAPY
Dance therapy began formally in the United States in 1942, and in 1956 dance therapists from across the country founded the American Dance Therapy Association, which has now grown to over 1,100 members. It publishes a journal, the American Journal of Dance Therapy, fosters research, monitors standards for professional practice, and develops guidelines for graduate education. Dance/movement therapy has been demonstrated to be clinically effective in the following: developing body image, improving self-concept and increasing self-esteem; facilitating attention; ameliorating depression, decreasing fears and anxieties, expressing anger; decreasing isolation, increasing communication skills and fostering solidarity; decreasing bodily tension, reducing chronic pain, enhancing circulatory and respiratory functions; reducing suicidal ideas, increasing verbalization.

Toni Poll-Sorensen, Ph.D. Human Design (715) 235-3350 N 8204 627th St. Colfax, WI 54730