A Victory for Veterans: Finding Motivation, Understanding Trauma, and the Effects of Dance Movement Therapy

Abstract

The strains of everyday life appear to demand folks the necessity of operative coping mechanisms that are cost-effective and easily accessible. Dance movement therapy has been found to reduce stress and anxiety. The study aims to learn if people, specifically veterans, in America practice dance movement therapy to reduce post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms. The research method is based on current literature as a capstone project. This research includes literature discussing experiments and data that correlates dance movement therapy with trauma. Individual researcher information has been compiled and reported in the Literature Review and Results sections. The research question is: In what way have veterans with PTSD benefitted from dance therapy over the last decade? The significance of this study is that veterans practicing dance movement therapy do so because of the past trauma in their daily lives. Dance movement therapy is a way to reduce anxiety and depression in our daily lives. Dance movement therapy brings about a balance of mindfulness through emotional, physical, and mental capacity. Dance movement therapy centers the practitioner so that the individual can experience inner peace.