Dancing has positive impacts, relieves stress

Alaina Howarth, Staff Writer

Dance, for some it’s entertaining to watch, a way to exercise, or a stress reliever. For others, it’s a
way of life.
Dancing affects the body in a variety of positive ways. In an article from 2013 titled “Dance’s
Effects on the Human Body & Mind” dancing not only improves flexibility and has effects on physical
health but has positive effects on mental health as well.
Senior Abigail Kresno has been dancing for almost 14 years outside of school. Kresno finds dance
to be a wonderful outlet for channeling her problems and integrates that into her dancing.
“Dance helps me through stress and gets me through my everyday life,” Kresno said.
“Dance has also been proven to be a therapeutic outlet for many,” stated “Dance’s Effects on the
Human Body & Mind”.
Natalie Fisher, head poms coach and history teacher, has always been surrounded by dance her
entire life and finds dancing to be an excellent outlet for her as well.
“Not only is [dance] a fun, physical activity where it’s going to be a stress reliever, but it is also an
outlet where you get to block everything else out and to try and hone in on different emotions,” Fisher
said. “It’s a challenge, but also a sense of accomplishment when you get through it,”
Along with being an outlet for many, dance allows those to not only create great, life-long friends
but to connect with people in a unique way.
According to the 2016 article “Dancing and Mental health”, “Dancing also allows us to become
more connected and social,”
Senior Kelli Powe has been dancing at a studio for eight years and was on the dance team at South
her freshman and sophomore year.
“[Dance has] given me an opportunity to connect with different people. It’s made me a tad bit
more outgoing. It’s given me people I can relate to, I’m comfortable around more people,” Powe said.
Through dance, she has been able to create life-long friends which is a favorable effect of dance.
Dance is also a way of expressing how one feels without saying any words. It is an art form and is
just that for many people.
“[Dance is] a feeling. It’s a form of expression, you can tell stories through your movements, and
you connect with an audience,” Powe said.
Through dance, dancers learn to exude confidence on and off the dance stage.
Fisher says dance teaches poise and confidence. It helps when dancing on a stage, speaking in
front of people or having to be the center of attention, illustrating composure and confidence.
Not only is dance a confidence booster, dance teaches valuable life lessons as well.
According to the 2017 article “Patience, Perseverance, and Punctuality” dance teaches patience,
perseverance, and punctuality. A dancer must be patient with their development, ability to pick up
combinations, and when dealing with others.
“Lessons I’ve learned through dance such as being nice to people, and learning how to respect
someone and their wishes, has traveled with me to school,” Kresno said.
Senior Jessica Rivera has been dancing competitively since she was eight years old and it has
influenced her as well as taught her many life lessons.
“[I] believe [dance] has made me a better person. It’s made me a lot more caring of other people’s
feelings and a lot more understanding,” Rivera said. “I have to realize that not everything is going to be
handed to be handed to me right away,”
Along with every upside, there are downsides to dancing as well.
In a 2009 article titled “Dancers’ Perceptions of Pain and Injury: Positive and Negative Effects”
204 dancers took part in questionnaires about injuries in dance.
“Findings indicated that 90% of the sample had experienced an injury (now or in the past),”
stated “Dancers’ Perceptions of Pain and Injury: Positive and Negative Effects”
Dancing can cause multiple injuries, mainly on the knees and lower back. Some injuries cause
dancers to stop dancing but because they enjoy it so much, some might lie about how severe their injuries
are.
“Data indicated that dancers may under report injuries on surveys,”, stated “Dancers’ Perceptions
of Pain and Injury: Positive and Negative Effects”
By not reporting an injury, the dancer is putting themselves at high risk of injuring themselves
even further because they are not properly treating the problem.
The vigorous years of training can teach someone to be patient and to take constructive criticism
and be able to apply it to their dancing. Training can also influence young dancers to nitpick every little
thing they do and cause poor mental health.
It is proven that the years of dance training can cause poor mental health, according to the 2017
article “Music, Ballet, Mindfulness, and Psychological Inflexibility,”.
113 nine to 16-year-olds took part in a questionnaire and the data confirmed “prior findings that
practice of ballet can have a potential impact on mental health by showing that young ballet students
exhibit greater psychological inflexibility,”, stated “Music, Ballet, Mindfulness, and Psychological
Inflexibility,”
Although there are some downsides to dancing, the positive effects will always stand out more to
dancers because of the how they grow to love and appreciate the sport.