Dance movement therapy and mental health support through dance and body-based practices
Reena Almoneda Chang is a dance movement therapist and community dance practitioner based in Montreal, Canada, with more than 15 years experience working with individuals struggling with various physical and mental health issues. She has worked with individuals who have experienced violence or abuse, racial, cultural, gender, and other forms of discrimination, isolation, and poverty, often integrating social justice work, which has allowed her to develop an approach that is both culturally sensitive and trauma informed.
In addition to a Master’s in Dance from the University of Quebec in Montreal (UQAM), she completed the program in dance movement therapy at the National Dance Therapy Centre (NDTC) of Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, and currently practices under supervision. She has facilitated dance movement therapy and adapted dance sessions for various vulnerable populations, including individuals with Alzheimer’s and other cognitive disorders, intellectual disabilities, autism, and Parkinson’s, the LGBTQ+ community, and young women who have been victims of sexual exploitation.
She has also facilitated movement and dance sessions that integrate elements of dance movement therapy with various community organizations working with vulnerable communities, including immigrant youth at the Café jeunesse multiculturel de Montréal-Nord and the HLM Jeanne-Mance, immigrant, single parent, low income families with young children at Women on the Rise in NDG, immigrant and refugee families with the Women’s Centre of Montreal and PEYO (Park Ex), indigenous women at the Native Women’s Shelter of Montreal, women who have been victims of abuse or violence, and individuals with addiction at the Clinique Nouveau Départ.
Approach
Her approach incorporates a diverse repertoire of techniques including breath work, sensori-motor exercises, visualization, somatic work, creative movement exploration and psychocorporal techniques, as well as mind-body practices, to help individuals struggling with various difficulties, including symptoms of stress, anxiety, depression, and physical pain or discomfort.
Sessions include an initial verbal check-in followed by an exploration of emerging themes on a body level, in a client-centred, trauma-informed and non-judgmental manner. No experience in dance is required, but rather an openness to exploring movement, relating that exploration to relevant themes and emotional material, and developing a greater connection to one’s body.
Individual sessions
Individual sessions are 1hr, and possible in person or online. It is also possible to have an initial free 15 minute consultation by telephone or video conference to meet and ask questions. Reduced rates are also available for those in need.
To book a session, or for information on group sessions, please click here.
