FEEL THE FEAR!

Fear will never go away! We all feel it in different ways, on different occasions and for different reasons. Many people cite public speaking as their most terrifying fear whereas others make it look easy (but fear flying!) It’s commonly held that the only way to get over fear is to push through it, in other words, do the thing you fear most!

In order to start tackling some of the fears that may be holding us back from fully expressing ourselves or leading a fulfilled life, we need to cultivate more self confidence. Confidence is a feeling of trust in someone or something and to be self-confident is to have confidence in yourself and your abilities.

Did you know that through dancing you can increase your self confidence? Studies have show that dancing can decrease anxiety, increase self-esteem, and improve psychological wellbeing.*

WAYS TO CULTIVATE SELF CONFIDENCE THROUGH BELLY DANCE

Having a positive body image is essential to feeling self confident. Focusing on the strength of your body and how good it feels to dance can increase feelings of gratitude and wonder towards your body. Feeling your body from within, rather than looking at it critically from the outside is a useful practice to cultivate.
The energy in belly dance is very much centred in the pelvis and lower body, helping us to feel more grounded and stable. Belly dance also helps to strengthen the lower body which gives a sense of power and confidence. You can literally “stand on your own two feet!”
Doing things that make us feel uncomfortable helps us to grow in confidence. Improvisation in dance requires you to step into your discomfort zone as does performing at a Hafla in our studio or on stage in a theatre.
Practising and cultivating a skill (like learning how to shimmy or do a vertical figure 8) can lead to an increased sense of achievement. Remember to be proud of what you can do. It will also feed into building up your self confidence.
Accepting yourself as you are leads naturally to more self confidence in yourself. Many women struggle to accept their feminine side and have been conditioned to play down their true nature in order to get ahead in the work place or for fear of standing out. Belly dance is a dance for and from women, the moves celebrate the female body and it gives you the freedom to play and experiment with many different facets of your femininity.

WHY IS SELF CONFIDENCE IMPORTANT FOR WOMEN?

Imagine a world where every girl grows up with an enormous sense of freedom and opportunity, believing that they can enter any profession they desire, become financially independent, dress as they chose and have complete control over the decisions they make as to how they live their lives.

Unfortunately that vision is currently a long way off. We live in a gender unequal world which is not only the result of inequality in society but also the result of how we, as women, hold ourselves back. The legacy of playing small exists both within us and around us.

Improving body image is one small action that can lead to increased self confidence overall, thereby enabling more women to put themselves out there bringing us one step closer to a gender equal world.

“Effects of Dance Interventions on Aspects of the Participants' Self: A Systematic Review” Tina M. Schwender, Sarah Spengler, Christina Oedl, Filip Mess