Dancing for Better Mental Health

Did you know you can dance your way to better mental health?  Anna Duberg (PhD), is a physiotherapist and health sciences researcher from Örebro University in Sweden. She is recognized for her dedication to improving youth health and her research on the stress-reducing benefits of dance. Besides her work as a research supervisor and innovation coach at Region Örebro County, Anna has founded and developed the method “Dance for health.” 

In this TED talk, Anna shares her journey from research to reality, and highlights the importance of turning the trend of mental illness in youth.  By sharing the key factors in Dance for Health-method ("joy of movement", "come as you are", "social inclusion" and "see what you have"), she gives inspiration on how dance can be a powerful tool to strengthen health, open up a new way of approaching life, and in the long run, make societal impact.  

Anna is a physiotherapist and  researcher in Health Sciences at Örebro University, Sweden. Currently, she combines her work as a research supervisor and innovation coach with her own innovation “dance for health”: a dance initiative she developed to improve youth mental health and reduce stress through dancing. Today, this method is widely implemented across Sweden as a cost-effective complement to school health care and has touched the lives of thousands of young people.