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Hi, I am Sami. I am the Operations and Clinical Director for the Youth Arts & Health Trust. I am also a registered Dance Movement Psychotherapist (DMP) based in Devon.
I completed a Masters in Dance Movement Psychotherapy at Dance Voice/Canterbury Christchurch University in 2016. Since graduating I have worked with a range of client groups such as learning disabilities, children in a school setting, mental health, dementia, elderly, young adults and refugees.
A Movement Therapy session is a safe, creative space that uses movement to support communication, connection, and emotional processing. Through movement, gestures, play, art, music, the body is brought into the therapeutic process. By encouraging children and young people to notice their sensations and understand what their bodies are communicating, we help build self-awareness and resilience, supporting nervous system regulation and a stronger sense of self.
It can sometimes be too overwhelming or scary to communicate, or label, our distress, movement therapy can offer individuals the opportunity to express themselves in a creative non-verbal way whilst still being supported and heard. Through processing emotions on a bodily level we can then explore putting words to experiences/feelings and creating a greater understanding of felt emotion.
Each session will unfold in a way that’s guided by the individual and includes as much, or as little, movement as they/you are comfortable with. There is also no dance experience required.
I enjoy the balance between managing operations and referrals within the team and my own caseload of inspiring children and young people.