Dissociation and Detachment

Music as a Unique Solution to a Trending Problem

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What does it mean to teach the body as an instrument? My thoughts on this topic have evolved over time and the expression has taken on new meaning. The longer that I teach this way, the more I feel like this is the key to unlocking the power of embodied experience. The psychological state that exists during these activities carries with it so many learning opportunities and cognitive benefits, pursuing that sensation is my primary objective in every lesson.

There is much literature devoted to the topic of “dissociation” which is a phenomenon that entered the field of psychological research in the early 20th century, during much the same period that Dalcroze was doing his earliest work. I’m not trained as a psychologist, but here is my understanding of the word “dissociation.” Under normative circumstances, the dissociative state is one of “daydreaming” or a sensation that take the mind out of its current moment and drifts off to another absorption. Under maladaptive conditions, the dissociative state is a disorder often triggered by trauma in which the individual loses the embodied sense of self and becomes out of touch with reality. Often this can manifest as a panic attack, a state of paralysis, or other dysfunctional behavior.