- When the going gets tough, do you feel stuck?
- Do you feel overwhelmed with painful emotions?
- Do you put on a brave face and detach yourself from your emotions?
- Do you feel like no one listens, understands or supports you?
They say, "When the going gets tough, the tough get going". But I think most of us, instead, retreat into a funk and function on auto-pilot. We either stew in our negativity alone or pretend that we're not hurting by putting on a brave face while our heart aches with pain. Or is that just me? All I know is that the longer the pain lingers, the more it effects the way I feel about myself, the way I engage the world, and my ability to make choices in alignment with what I really want and deserve. I never fully "get going" until I release the pain of negative thoughts and toxic emotions.
Dancing has always done that for me. Dance allows you to connect with your body and claim your space in the world with every rhythmic step of your feet, slow wind of your hips, and flip of your hair. When you surrender your insecurities and inhibitions to the music and let it stream through your veins, it inspires movement that feels like pure abandon. It's both ecstatic and grounding; a moving meditation that allows you to be fully present in body, mind, and spirit. It's a spiritual place where nothing really matters beyond the multi-sensory experience of connecting with yourself, your emotions, and your environment. To me, it feels like exorcising the demons from my soul. Fear, anxiety, self-doubt, sadness, and anger are released as the world around you evaporates into bliss. Your own authentic movement and impulsive choices of expression merge with beats, rhythms, and lyrics making you feel deeply connected to something almost intangible. But that's just you in your most primal state, where words are unnecessary in order to feel heard and supported. Because dance is like speaking to the Universe who listens objectively and harmonizes with your subconscious to reveal the melody that is your truth. Through dance, we feel, speak, and understand who we are.
As Martha Graham said, "The body says what the words cannot" and "Dance is the hidden language of the of the body". So, when the going gets tough, dance it out.
#WriteYourTruth
What does dance feel like to you and why?
