Dance therapy for chronic pain and autoimmune diseases has been an incredible tool in my healing journey. I went from dozens of autoimmune symptoms plaguing my life to having zero. In order to get there, I had to do a lot of hard work. I found a lot of triggers of my autoimmune disease through functional medicine lab testing, and then really healed my body through things like supplements, sauna use, exercise, sunshine, healing trauma, breath work, a healthy diet, and even the occasional coffee enemas.
But something simple and fun that helped shift my symptoms significantly was dance. Sometimes these free and fun tools are more powerful than a handful of supplements.
The truth is that you can improve pain, reduce inflammation, boost mood and cognition, improve heart health, and fire up your metabolism by doing this ONE thing… dancing. Yes, really! There’s tons of research showing how powerful dance is to heal the body.
For example, a 2024 study in the OBM Integrative and Complementary Medicine journal showed dance to improve cardiovascular health, metabolism, and inflammation.
2024 Metabolic Function Study: How Dance Therapy Helps Autoimmune Diseases and Chronic Pain
This study included 40 healthy adults, aged 20-40, half female and half male. The participants danced a hip hop-style dance to hip hop music for 15 minutes a day, five days a week for four weeks. Here’s what they found:
- Cardiovascular Improvement: Participants experienced lower blood pressure and improved lipid profiles, indicating enhanced cardiovascular health.
- Metabolic Benefits: Participants saw reductions in glucose, insulin levels, and the Homeostasis Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR) index.
- Reduced Inflammation: There was a notable decrease in inflammatory markers like IL-6 and CRP, and an increase in IL-10.
Since inflammation and blood sugar dysregulation are major triggers for worse autoimmune issues, I would highly recommend something as safe and fun as dance therapy for chronic pain to improve your overall health!
2022 Dance for Chronic Pain Conditions Systematic Review: Key Findings
In a comprehensive systematic review published in Pain Medicine in 2022, researchers delved into how dance can be a key component in managing chronic pain, a common issue for those with autoimmune conditions. This review pooled data from multiple studies containing participates who had back pain, Fibromyalgia, Rheumatoid Arthritis, and other conditions to give us a clearer picture of how dance affects health outcomes.
Here’s what the systematic review found:
- Pain Management: Participants consistently reported reductions in chronic pain levels across various studies, attributing improvement to the physical activity and emotional expression facilitated by dance.
- Biopsychosocial Benefits: The review highlighted dance as a multifaceted therapy that addresses not just the physical aspects of health but also the psychological and social facets. This holistic approach is key in chronic pain management, where psychological and social factors play a significant role.
- Long-term Benefits: Notably, the longer participants engaged in dance programs, the more significant the benefits. Those who danced regularly for sessions lasting 60-120 minutes reported the most substantial improvements in pain perception and quality of life.
Personal Insights and Practical Tips
Integrating dance into my routine was something that felt natural and fun, not forced. It’s also been a way for be to express myself authentically, creatively, and freely. It’s allowed me to connect deeper to my body and joy. I’ve experimented with many types of dancing including country swing, west coast swing, contact dance, shuffling, hip hop, and just free flow dancing on my own.
Here are a few tips to incorporate dance for chronic pain relief into your life:
- Start Simple: You don’t need complex routines or extended sessions. Just as the study participants benefited from 15-minute sessions, you can start with short, daily dance breaks to your favorite songs. Don’t know “how” to dance? YES YOU DO! Seriously — just move your body however it wants to with the beats.
- Choose Fun Over Form: The best kind of dance is the one you actually enjoy. Whether it’s hip hop, salsa, or freestyle dancing in your kitchen, what matters is that it brings you joy and gets you moving.
- Make It a Habit: Consistency is key. Try to make dance a regular part of your routine, perhaps by setting aside time after dinner or first thing in the morning to shake up your day with some music and movement. If I have a busy day with only a few minutes in between call, I’ll turn on a song I love and have a short dance party in my office before my next call. Sometimes I blast music when I’m cooking and dance in my kitchen. It can be easy to get it in short bursts if you feel busy.
- Make an Energy Boost Playlist: This is a playlist you put together on your Spotify or wherever you listen to music, filled with songs that give you energy and you love to move to. Whenever you are feeling fatigued, a little down, and just need a boost… put a song from this play list on and dance it out or even just shake your body!
Conclusion: Why Dance Therapy Works for Chronic Pain and Autoimmune Diseases
If you are battling chronic pain and/or an autoimmune disease, dance can be a holistic option to reduce pain and inflammation, while supporting better mood, heart health, and overall wellness.
I truly believe we can heal ourselves for almost any “disease” as long as it was not something we were born with. Healing autoimmunity, mystery symptoms, and other chronic health issues can happen with a holistic approach using daily sunshine exposure, grounding, a healthy diet, healthy relationships, adequate sleep, and fun movement like dance!
In my online practice at Natural Health Rising, I help clients figure out what to eat and how to adopt these holistic habits. Beyond that, we use cutting-edge functional medicine lab testing to identify if there’s something deeper creating the “dis-ease” and symptoms, such as parasites, candida, mold toxicity, heavy metals, and nutrient deficiencies. If you are ready to explore a combination of functional medicine and holistic health to heal naturally, click this link right here.
You’ll be taken to a page where you can schedule a free health consult and take 2 minutes to fill out a health form. On our call we can discuss what steps you may need to take to reach your health goals and get you back to feeling like YOU again. See you soon.
References
Rume, Rotu & Obukohwo, Oyovwi & Ejiro, Ohwin & Oreoluwa, Oyelere. (2024). Dancing Exercise Enhances Metabolic Functions via Hypercortisolism-Mediated Inhibition of Inflammatory Cytokines in Healthy Adult Volunteers. OBM Integrative and Complementary Medicine. 09. 1-21. 10.21926/obm.icm.2401015
Benjamin Hickman, Fereshteh Pourkazemi, Roxanna N Pebdani, Claire E Hiller, Alycia Fong Yan, Dance for Chronic Pain Conditions: A Systematic Review, Pain Medicine, Volume 23, Issue 12, December 2022, Pages 2022–2041, https://doi.org/10.1093/pm/pnac092
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