Dance movement psychotherapy

Domain VIII · Creative & expressive arts therapies · Bonnie Meekums · United Kingdom

What it is

DMP is a psychotherapy, not a dance class. ADMP UK describes it as a relational process in which client and therapist "engage creatively through body movement and dance", together with verbal and non-verbal reflection. It is used with individuals, couples, families, groups and teams, and clients…

Format

• Process model (Meekums 2002). Meekums proposes that the creative process cycles within each session and across the whole therapy. The stages are presented in order, but in practice the facilitator moves back and forth between them several times.
• Session format. ADMP UK states that therapy may be short or long term, individual or group. For one worked group protocol, Hyvönen et al. (2020) ran:

Who practises it, and how they are trained or regulated

• themes in sequence: goals; body awareness and resources; symbols; safety; emotional regulation; body narrative; playfulness; agency; reviewing the life span;
• Illumination to evaluation. Allow at least 10 to 15 minutes before the end. Move to evaluation earlier if arousal climbs beyond what the client can regulate (see section 5).
• Professional body. ADMP UK keeps a Professional Register of practitioners it recognises as competent to practise, and a Student Register for trainees. Training is through ADMP-recognised MA courses. The list of specific programmes is not drawn on.

Questions to explore with your client

• What drew you to it, and what are you hoping it will change?
• Is there physical contact? Was it explained beforehand, and do you feel free to say no or stop at any point?
• Does it involve intense or unusual breathing? Have you been told about the medical conditions for which that is not advised?
• Is it a group, retreat or community? How do they respond if someone wants to leave or raises a concern?
• How do you and the practitioner understand what is happening, in spiritual or cultural terms? Is that a source of comfort, worry, or both?
• Who runs it, and what training or registration do they hold?
• What actually happens in a session or meeting, and how often?
• What does it cost, and is there pressure to commit to more?
• How do you feel afterwards, in the hours and days that follow?
• Does it fit with, or clash with, the work we do here?

What practitioners of it watch for

• Do not interpret drawings or movement as diagnostic evidence (see 4.20).
• A client leaving in a high or dissociated state. Allow enough time and ground again if needed.
• Rocking can be regressive or can trigger memories for some people. Offer it as an option, not an instruction.
• Whether the theme fits where the group is. Hyvönen et al. adapted the themes to each group, and you should too.
• Flat or withdrawn gestures that may signal low mood or dissociation. Use these to set the intensity for the session.

Problems the guide addresses

• Stuck, self-conscious or "I can't dance" clients
• Resistance and refusal to move
• Overwhelm, flooding and dissociation
• Escalation, aggression and unsafe movement
• Physical incidents: falls, dizziness and pain
• Non-attendance and non-engagement
• Ruptures in the movement relationship
• Touch-related difficulties
• Psychosis, mania, eating disorders and other modality-specific risks
• Cultural and religious factors

When to involve someone else

• New or worsening physical symptoms, or advice to stop or change prescribed medication: involve the client's doctor or prescriber.
• Signs of coercion, isolation from family and friends, escalating costs or secrecy: discuss openly and consider safeguarding.
• A crisis or thoughts of suicide: follow your crisis protocol. In the US, call or text 988; in the UK and Ireland, Samaritans on 116 123.

Drawn automatically from the guide's own sections. Stay curious: neither endorse nor dismiss what the client values, and check anything that matters against the full guide and its sources. Not medical advice.