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GAATW International Secretariat and Kolkata-Sanved are co-organising a workshop on Dance Movement Therapy for women colleagues providing psycho-social assistance to trafficked and/or abused women migrant workers in Asia:
Dance Movement Therapy Workshop for Care Givers
What is Dance Movement Therapy (DMT) & What it is Not?
Dance/Movement Therapy (DMT) is defined by the American Dance Therapy Association (ADTA) as "The psychotherapeutic use of movement as a process which furthers the emotional, cognitive and physical integration of the individual."
DMT offers the individual the opportunities to be expressive, release tension or trauma, find their inner voice, and their independence. It can be practiced both as an individual and within group therapy in; health, education, social service settings and in private practice. It is founded on the principle that movement reflects an individual’s patterns of thinking and feeling. DMT can help participants shift to a more positive self image, less satisfying behaviors can be transformed to healthier expressions, and social struggles can be worked through alternative movement outlets. Psycho-physical techniques can provide new hope and possibilities for people who suffer from the pain and hardship of life’s psychological and social problems.
The foundations of DMT are formed from three influences; modern dance movement, movement analysis and the developing theories of psychotherapy. Marian Chace is the American pioneer of Dance Movement Therapy. Other pioneers include Blanche Evan, Mary Whitehouse, Trudy Schoop and Rudolf Laban.
Benefits of DMT
Dance/movement therapists work with individuals of all ages. They work directly with individuals and in group settings. We all have experienced the healing effects of movement, whether it be dancing the "electric slide" or taking an aerobics class. The dance/movement therapist intentionally taps into the healing nature of movement by using the art of dance as an observation/assessment tool and then as a means of choreographing responses to issues and movements members bring to a group. The dance/movement therapist responds, echoing and answering each person's movement, thus promoting feelings of self-worth. By utilizing the physical elements of breathing, posture, gesture, tension release, space, force/weight and time, people gain numerous benefits:
- Increase self-awareness, self-esteem and personal autonomy
- Experience links between thoughts, feelings and actions
- Increase and practice adaptive coping behaviors
- Express and manage overwhelming feelings or thoughts
- Maximize resources for communication
- Access internal resources through creative movement play
- Experience the impacts of personal actions on others
- Explore and experience internal and external reality
- Initiate physical, emotional and/or cognitive shifts and change
- Develop trusting relationships
- Manage feelings that interrupt learning
- Enhance skills in social interaction
Dance Movement Therapy does not aim to replace clinical methods to deal with trauma, nor are DMT sessions dance classes.
Who Can Participate in GAATW & Kolkata-Sanved Co-Organized Workshop?
Although DMT workshops can be used by many people in many diverse situations and indeed Kolkata-Sanved has worked with many different groups of people GAATW-IS has organized these workshops primarily for its member organisations in Asia. Recognizing the need for psycho-social care and the absence of affordable non-clinical methods to offer the services, we approached Kolkata-Sanved as a resource group. Introductions to Dance Movement Therapy & Art Therapy were given to colleagues at the Asia Regional Consultation in 2009. Later in the year, a DMT workshop was organized for Shakti-Samuha, a member of GAATW that is founded and run by survivors of trafficking. In 2010 another workshop was organized for members in Odisha, India. At the International Members Congress and Conference in 2010, Kolkata-Sanved and Gabfai-Thailand worked together to present an opening performance. And in 2011 GAATW-IS, upon request from members, organised a DMT workshop for social workers and care givers from Indonesia. The feed back from members who have participated in these workshops have been very positive. What has been emphasized again and again by colleagues is what minimal resources are needed for DMT (some space, some time and your willingness) and how they have been able to use it in various settings.
Encouraged by the positive feedback GAATW-IS and Kolkata-Sanved are planning to organize an 8 day DMT workshop for women colleagues working to provide psycho-social assistance to trafficked women and abused women migrant workers in Asia.
So if you are a woman and work in a shelter, a drop-in centre, a counselling centre or a short-stay home, for trafficked women or abused women migrant workers, this workshop is for you.
Although colleagues from GAATW Member organizations will get preference this workshop is not a members-only event. Maximum number of trainees is 25.
Date and Venue
The workshop is a residential one and will be for 8 days. It will be held in Thailand in mid-February, 2014. Exact date and venue will be announced by end of December, 2013.
Next Steps/Timeline
- Expression of Interest & Preliminary Queries: Until 12 December, 2013
- Last Date to Receive Applications: 6 January, 2014
- Selection of Participants: By 20 January, 2014
- Logistics and Other Communication between Participants and Organisers: 25 January-10 Feb, 2014
- DMT Workshop: Mid-February
- Follow-Up Communication and Support Visit: March-August, 2014
For more details on the content and methodology of the workshop click here.
Click here for the Application Form.