"Looking around for quick fixes in my flat my bed, some stale chocolate digestives and a packet of cigarettes I settled on the kitchen radio, which had been humming faintly in the background all morning. Tuned to BBC Radio 6 Music, it was playing a disco track I didn't recognise. But the beat was steady and intermingled with the sounds of tambourines, synths and drums."
"I turned up the volume, and then my body was moving: limbs swinging, feet tapping, hips wiggling. I continued into the next song, leaning into the feeling and becoming more animated to the sounds of another upbeat 70s track, imagining myself on a crowded, sweaty dancefloor. It was all very silly. But by the third song, my anxiety had melted away. I was smiling. And I felt more like myself again."
"For me, anxiety has always manifested as an excess of energy To be clear, I cannot dance. Not even a little bit. It's a running joke among my friends, who have been ruthlessly mocking my moves for years. Unfortunately, the derision is deserved: I have no rhythm and my hips are so wooden that they cannot help but tell this very sad truth. Still, I've always enjoyed dancing and have persisted at weddings, festivals and parties."
A tense conversation triggered physical anxiety symptoms and prompted spontaneous dancing at home. Music from a kitchen radio inspired movement that shifted bodily sensations—racing heart, quivering breath and trembling fingers—into swinging limbs and tapping feet. After a few songs the anxious energy dissipated, smiling returned and a sense of self was restored. Anxiety tends to manifest as excess energy for the narrator and can be triggered by interpersonal slights, unsettling emails or small losses. Other coping mechanisms exist but are less healthy or accessible; dancing proved immediate, accessible and mood-restoring.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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