Theresa Judge learns how to dance away any negative life experiences or emotional trauma at a 5 Rhythms workshop in Dublin.
'This dance workshop is not like learning to waltz or tango - it is about your life, and it is about you in your body and how you express yourself."
This is how Caitríona Nic Ghiollaphádraig introduces a "5 Rhythms" workshop. The dance she teaches is described as "mindful movement meditation practice".
She says it is similar to other forms of meditation in that it involves being fully present in the moment, and while she stresses that it is not dance therapy, she believes it can be healing and can "facilitate change" in people's lives. It also encourages creative expression.
"Physically I have seen people change, people who were very constricted in their movements and who looked quite weighed down, bit by bit - it is like watching a flower open, it is like their inner self is coming out, they become more open and have more confidence.
"People say to me that it has helped them to find the courage to make changes, in their job or in relationships," she says.
The practice was developed in the US by Gabrielle Roth, who had trained in ballet and modern dance, and worked for a time with Fritz Perls, the founder of Gestalt Therapy. The basis of the theory behind 5 Rhythms is that negative life experiences and emotional trauma become stored in our bodies over time.
By moving our bodies, according to Roth, we can "shake up firmly rooted systems of thought, old patterns of behaviour and emotional responses that just don't work anymore".
She believed that if people were given the opportunity and the guidance to move in this way, they could heal themselves.
Nic Ghiollaphádraig readily accepts that people don't change their lives after one weekend workshop, that it takes time.
She says there are 300 to 400 people in Ireland who practise 5 Rhythms regularly and there are currently two teachers trained in the method giving workshops.
On a dreary Saturday morning at the start of a weekend workshop in a small hall near the centre of Dublin, it may be difficult to believe that dance can change your life, but there are certainly people willing to give it a try.
Quite a few of the participants have done workshops or classes before and there are clearly people who believe that practising the dance over a long period has benefited them in a very significant way.
Sitting around in a circle for a brief introduction, women of various ages and only one man on this occasion give various reasons for attending.
While some say simply "because I love to dance", others refer to difficulties in their lives such as recent bereavements, relationship problems or a feeling of being "stuck" and a desire to make changes.
Nic Ghiollaphádraig doesn't dwell for too long on the theory or people's reasons for attending but gets people up and moving.
The focus over the introductory morning session is on encouraging people to move in a way that feels comfortable for them to music that varies from rhythmic and lively to flowing and relaxed. We are asked on occasions to focus on different body parts and also to communicate with a partner using our bodies.
What is interesting to a half-observer/half-participant - in a culture not known for encouraging free, unrestricted dance - is the extent to which participants, even first-timers, enter into the experience. While the theory may strike some as abstract, Nic Ghiollaphádraig counters this by focusing on the practical task of moving and by keeping things light and humorous when possible.
When talking of the need to let go of fantasies, she confesses to dreaming of being six foot tall, with long legs and aged 33. "I still dream about that but I let it go every time I get to the dance floor," she says.
The 5 Rhythms refer to different ways of moving and are related to different ways of behaving and of being in life - flowing, staccato, chaos, lyrical and stillness.
In a workshop, participants practise moving in each of the rhythms. Nic Ghiollaphádraig says that what the work reveals is that many people are often stuck in one or two rhythms.
"And the ideal is to have access, in this work anyway, to the five rhythms, so sometimes, I can go with the flow, sometimes I can be very definite and clear, sometimes I can let go, sometimes I can lighten up, sometimes I can be still, so that I have an appropriate response to whatever situations life is throwing at me."
She says that when someone feels resistance to moving in a certain rhythm, this usually mirrors something in their lives.
According to Roth's theory, "each rhythm can awaken energies that can help you to separate yourself from your conditioned responses to life".
Nic Ghiollaphádraig says she believes the experience of moving in front of other people and of being part of a group also helps people's confidence. The people who take part are usually very encouraging and supportive of each other.
"People tend to start giving themselves approval and then need less approval from others," she says.
Over time and with regular practise, she says, people begin to discover the things they have been carrying around in their bodies.
"Once the body starts to loosen up, the emotional body starts to loosen as well."