Sheilagh McGlynn, Registered Psychotherapist and JourneyDance Facilitator
About JourneyDance
JourneyDance is a transformational dance movement practice. It is a free form practice that encourages participants to find their own movement and method of expression. This practice requires no dance experience. It is not “follow the leader”, so it is impossible to do it incorrectly. You find your movement and it will look different than all the other bodies in the room. JourneyDance is available to all body shapes and abilities. You move at your own pace. I’ve led people with injuries, people who use mobility devices, people who have laid in final resting pose in the corner while others have danced around them (I’m not kidding!).
The JourneyDance flow leads participants on a journey of physical and emotional transformation. Through breath, sweat, and expression you will release what doesn’t serve you anymore and gain an experience of yourself as pure, powerful energy.
In JourneyDance we dance without mirrors to release judgement of ourselves and others. This practice is not about learning steps, it is about revealing, recovering and rediscovering your natural intuitive movement. We activate imagination and utilize diverse forms of freestyle improvisational dance, yoga, ritual, theatre and meditation to a soundtrack of inspiring world music, creating an ecstatic celebration of the human spirit.
My JourneyDance Story…
I've always loved dancing. I've always felt the tension about being a "good" dancer and loving the freedom movement offered me. When I discovered JourneyDance I realized that "doing it right" or "looking good" didn't matter. I was hooked! The deeper I dove into the practice, the more and more I realized how much it had to offer. I found JourneyDance at a particularly difficult time in my life. I just started therapy and was working through some big emotional work. In retrospect I now realize how instrumental my dance practice was in my healing journey. As a Registered Psychotherapist I encourage my clients to engage in a physical practice to help move their emotional blocks. I LOVE being able to offer this healing work to people. I love encountering new participants to JourneyDance and witnessing them transform through music, visualization and play. Leaving a class yesterday, one of my participants said to me "I feel so good". That is what this work is about. We all deserve to feel that good. I believe it is possible. I hope you will come and dance and see how good you can feel!
More information
For more information on JourneyDance check out www.journeydance.com.
For events happening in Toronto visit the JourneyDance Toronto Facebook page.