Description
Book SynopsisCelebrated dance artist and body therapist Miranda Tufnell takes us on a moving and inspiring exploration of the field of dance and health. For 14 years she worked in a GP surgery in Cumbria and the book opens with a vivid account of an arts project that she and her collaborators ran there for people with long-term health conditions. This is a book about the body and movement, about imagination and health. It gathers many stories, voices and activities from artists, patients and health practitioners. The arts have long played a role in medicine and there is a substantial body of evidence for the potency of arts practice in strengthening our resources and capacity for wellbeing. While the work is sourced in the body and movement, it is not only written for people with a dance background. Listening creatively to the body strengthens our body intelligence and ability to look after ourselves effectively. Practitioners from many backgrounds come into this field and will find something of interest. This book sets out to inspire rather than to teach, to offer windows into practice, and to convey something of what it is like to work in this field.
Trade Review"This book is a plea for dance as a means of moving beyond the anatomised, medicalised, sexualised body to the body as a vital portal into the shifting and complex nature of being alive. It takes the reader on journeys that weave together stories, insights and practical exercises. A rare and moving book and a companion for health practitioners, teachers, students, movers and those searching for creative expression." Niamh Dowling, Principal, RADA
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Foreword Dr Gavin Young Preface My story of movement Introduction A medicine within PART 1 ‘A Breath of Fresh Air’ – an account of a project. Brenda Mallon and Miranda Tufnell PART 2 Approaches to Practice Breath Touch The practice of saying yes, Eva Karczag Between you and me Self care in times of chaos and violence, Michal Shahak Getting your bearings – movement and sensing Towards meaning – body, health and imagination ‘Chance of fair’ – writing with people with mental and physical health issues, Kay Syrad PART 3 Laying the Foundations – movement in early years development, Karen Adcock Doyle and Jasmine Pasch PART 4 Practitioner Accounts What is this pill called dance? – music and movement in hospital, Filipa Pereira-Stubbs Harry: the story of a child in hospital, Lisa Dowler (co-written with Kellie Rixon, Harry’s mother) Dancing recall: making connections, Daphne Cushnie Moving forward with Parkinson’s, Amanda Fogg Breath and becoming in mental health and addiction, Sister Bridget Folkard A dance for Buddug, Cai Tomos What is health? Permissions Illustrations Biographies of Contributors Bibliography and Resources
