Somatic Dance and Movement Therapy with Anika Voy

In this podcast episode, we’re exploring Somatic Dance as a form of movement therapy. My guest, Anika Voy, is a trained psychotherapist who helps her clients and students find authentic self-expression and healing through dance.

Episode Details:

Anika explains that “the dance floor is a microcosm of our life,” and describes how creative movement can be used as a tool of discovery, as well as self-expression.

We talk about the differences between dance as a performance art vs. somatic dance as a form of therapy, or a style of personal mindful movement practice. She also describes certain obstacles and misconceptions about dance related to religion, ideas about sexuality, being a “good” dancer, or associating dance with clubbing or substance use.

Somatic Dance Topics You’ll Hear About:

• how movement reveals traits innate to a person’s physicality, as well as their conditioned habits
• dance as an opportunity to move with emotions and give them space
• using movement, footwork, and music to invoke or explore certain energies like power, groundedness, lightness, or fluidity
• the balance between structured dance movements and the freedom to improvise.

And, Anika also shares some of her backstory, including how she discovered somatic dance and movement therapy during a period of severe depression. After completing her studies to become a therapist, she took the inspiring leap (as a single mother!) to relocate from Berlin to Costa Rica, following the authentic calling she discovered through her healing dance practice.

Guest Bio:

Anika Voy left the urban jungle of Berlin six years ago to move to the tropical rainforests of Latin America. Her personal journey into self-discovery began with a severe episode of depression in her 20’s. She realized she was living someone else’s life and started searching for answers. That search led to dance therapy, where her lifelong love for movement and her growing passion for psychology merged. She first encountered dance therapy in 2011 as a patient in a psychosomatic rehabilitation clinic. It sparked a deeper interest in movement and its positive impact on our well-being, which led to Pilates, yoga, and mindfulness practices like MBSR (Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction) and MBCT (Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy). In 2017, she became a certified Alternative Psychotherapist, and in 2019 she received her certification as a Systemic Dance Therapist. She also had the opportunity to lead a project at the Taller de Danza in San José, integrating dance therapy methodologies into performance at Costa Rica’s largest institution for dance and theater. Today she works independently, offering monthly Urban Somatic Dance sessions and 1:1 Somatic Dance Mentoring, using movement as a profound tool for self-discovery and growth.

Resources and Links from this episode:

To learn more about Anika’s work, visit her website, follow her on Instagram at @anikavoy_living_in_motion, or look her up on Spotify to find playlists for your own dance explorations!

In this episode, I also mentioned the Gentle Change Collective, which is a new offering from a previous podcast guest, Andrew Lang. (Check out Ep. 69 with Andrew, “Unmasking the Inner Critic.”) The Gentle Change Collective is a mentoring group for people who are interested in social change, but aren’t really sure how to take action in a way that feels like a fit. This program starts in February, and it could be a really good way to go from hopelessly scrolling to finding meaningful actions that make sense for you AND make a difference…

I also wanted to send some extra love to Los Angeles in this episode. The Foothills area of LA (near Altadena) was my home for many years. I still have a lot of friends there and so many fond memories of the place itself. It’s been about a week since the devastating wildfires began, and support is still very much needed. Rebuilding will be a long term process.

So, I thought I would share a few of my favorite local organizations, informed by deep ties both my husband and I have from working in the non-profit sector there:

Pasadena Community Foundation https://pasadenacf.org/ – Community foundations are in an excellent position to provide long-term support, due to their existing relationships to a variety of organizations serving the local area. PCF grants go to vetted organizations focused on social services, housing, senior programs, healthcare, education, animal welfare, the arts, and the environment.

For more immediate needs, there are many (many) GoFundMe pages raising funds for families and businesses who have lost their home and/or livelihood in the fires. Simply search under the “emergency” category on GoFundMe.com.

And, I also recommend the California Fire Foundation, which supports victims of fire, as well as the brave and tireless firefighters. Donations can go towards cash cards that are distributed on the scene, in the moment of shock when someone loses their house to fire. (This helps people pay for essentials like hotel and food right away.) The California Fire Foundation also has a fund to support firefighters and their families, because this heroic job is extremely dangerous. Firefighters risk their lives and future health to help others, and we cannot thank or support them enough.