Tag: dance therapy

Support Rx Ballroom Dance on Giving Tuesday

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Hi dancers!

Popping in real quick to share a post from a nonprofit I work with – Rx Ballroom Dance. I’ve shared information about the organization before. We provide FREE ballroom dance classes to people struggling with neurodegenerative conditions such as Parkinson’s. The effects of these classes on the participants have been incredible to witness. People are getting physically stronger, improving their balance, coordination and memory recall, AND they are happier!

Free to participants means we depend on grants and donations to keep the program running. So please consider making a donation today!

Learn more and donate:

https://rxballroomdance.com/its-giving-tuesday-double-your-donation-up-to-5000/

Guest Post: The Mental Health Benefits of Dancing by Rachel James

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Please welcome to the blog, Rachel James! She is a fellow blogger out of the UK who kindly put together a few important reminders for all of us dance enthusiasts. The topic of this article may seem obvious to us, but obvious benefits can be easily taken for granted. Also, what is obvious to us is not obvious to all. So help spread the word! Let everyone know about the wonderful and amazing mental health benefits of dance.

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Dancing in the Magic of the Moment

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Haul out the holly
Put up the tree before my spirit falls again
Fill up the stocking
I may be rushing things, but deck the halls again now

“We Need a Little Christmas” -written by Jerry Herman

Holiday shoppers, the Practice Ballroom Dance store is officially open for the season! Normally, I do a couple short sales toward the end of the year, but 2020 is hella different. So I’ve decided to do things a little different. Book and journal bundles are on sale and will stay that way through the end of the year!

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It’s ok if you don’t feel like dancing right now

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Officially two weeks in with this new “stay at home” reality (technically it’s been about a week and a half by order of the state but I started earlier). Week 1 was stressful and surreal, like “crap, is this really happening?” Week 2 was more contemplative. Yes, this is happening and it could be happening for a long while.

It’s been interesting to see how the dance community has reacted to their entire industry essentially being put out of work until further notice. Some reacted quickly to shift their services online and minimize disruption of their business. Some have shifted to giving away their services and asking for donations to keep them afloat. Others are simply showing up online frequently with inspirational messages and short dance demonstrations to encourage people to keep moving. The common thread is no one is ready to give up.

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Guest Post: Writing the Prescription for Ballroom Dance

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Erin Drake is a professional ballroom dancer and teacher in Orange County, California. When I heard about her new nonprofit, Rx Ballroom Dance, I knew it would be something you guys would love to learn about and support. Please read on to hear about the amazing progress her first participant has already made.

NOW THROUGH DECEMBER 25: When you buy the Solo Practice Guide for Ballroom Dancing, I will donate 25% of the sale to Rx Ballroom Dance.

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Mandy Mykitta: Daring to Turn Disabilities into Dance Abilities

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I met Mandy Mykitta, this month’s interviewee, at the Murdy Park community center in Huntington Beach, California. When I arrived, kids were outside playing on playground equipment and a game was in session on a basketball court while parents watched and chatted. Families spending time together outside? Imagine that! After a long day and getting stuck in traffic on the way to the interview, seeing some pure and simple positivity lifted my mood.

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Writing Without Words

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I’m fighting that feeling I get when I think I haven’t done enough to feed my passions. It’s a mix of antsy and adrift topped off with a dollop of blues.  I can feel there are thoughts and feelings inside me that want out. They want to be expressed and are making it difficult to focus. But when I opened up a new blog post, the words were MIA.

So basically, this is me trying to drag myself out of the muck. This is one of those crappy days I need to show up for. If I can waltz without a partner, I can figure out how to write without having the words first. Be warned, this will probably be akin to jumping in the car and starting to drive without any destination in mind. Scenic route to nowhere, here we come!

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“Ballroom Was My Defibrillator” – A Conversation with Elizabeth Thomson

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When I first spoke with Nicholas Barkley and Elizabeth Thomson about doing an interview for the blog, I also proposed a second set of individual interviews. Their stories of how ballroom became the key to coping with their PTSD were incredible and deserved their own spaces, separate from their shared story of becoming an amateur couple.

Liz was kind enough to make time for me during one of her visits down to Orange County. We met at my studio after one of my dance lessons and talked for over an hour. While we sat stretched out on the floor of the teachers’ break room, Liz shared her journey, from enlisting in the Army to getting diagnosed with PTSD to finding relief in ballroom. Although she still struggles, ballroom has been Liz’s defibrillator. It brought her back to life and saved her from becoming “just another PTSD statistic.”

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Interview: Elizabeth Thomson and Nicholas Barkley, From Boots to Bling

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In my continued effort to bring you stories from other ballroom dancers besides me, I’m happy to introduce you to an American Smooth amateur couple, Elizabeth Thomson and Nicholas Barkley. They have backgrounds that you would not expect to find in ballroom and share an important message. This month, we get to learn how they got started in ballroom and formed their new partnership.

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