Healing Through Oriental Dance: Part 1, Physical Healing - Page 2

In July, 1997, the Harvard Health Letter reported a study in Norway which concluded that women who exercise at least 4 hours per week are 37% less likely to develop breast cancer than those who don't exercise. The higher the exercise, the lower the likelihood of cancer.

Now, the study doesn't address whether exercising after a diagnosis can lead to speedier healing, but it might. Doctors have known for some time that exercise reduces the levels in the body of the female hormones estrogen and progesterone, which is why young girls who are top competitors in gymnastics, ice skating, and other sports often experience delayed onset of puberty. Cancer researchers know that certain forms of breast cancer feed off of these same hormones. One of the common treatments for breast cancer is drug therapy to induce early menopause, thus starving the tumors of the hormones.

So, could it be that belly dancing can help the body heal from cancer? No one that I know of has performed studies on this topic, but the facts that we do have seem to suggest it's a reasonable theory.

Real-Life Experiences

Whiplash

Less than a month after incurring whiplash in an auto accident, Dunya has returned to her dance classes once or twice a week. Of course, she is taking it easy, and staying within the boundaries of safe movement. She reports, "The beginning belly dance class is especially helpful, with its gentle movements of stretching and isolation. It cheers me up immensely and helps me feel that I haven't completely lost all my physical abilities. I enjoy the friendship and support of the women in the class. It's a good boost, physically and psychologically. Being injured makes me feel stiff, slow, and old. Dancing the basic moves makes me feel graceful and pretty."

Back Problems

Ever since an accident in her mid-teens, Karen has had back problems. The doctors treated it by recommending bed rest, which occurred for 1-2 weeks every year. She tried swimming, but that didn't work because her scoliosis caused her to do the moves improperly, and sometimes led to straining something else. In her late 40's, she tried belly dancing, and discovered it helped! The hip circles and shimmies seemed to relieve pain, even during an attack. As an additional benefit, dancing also relieved menstrual cramps which often occurred simultaneously with the disk pain. It took about 2 years before she became comfortable enough with doing the moves to relax and enjoy the dance. Now, when her back starts to hurt, she turns on the music!