Dance professor shows students how to chill

Author: Michelle Harvey

When was the last time that you stopped studying, disregarded your stack of books, turned up your favorite song and just danced?

Think about your favorite dance move: the Charleston, the cha-cha or the one-two step. Think about how your special dance dissipates the stress of schoolwork and the chaos of everyday life.

On Thursday, March 13, about 30 students and faculty members gathered in the cozy front room of the Chellis House to listen to Professor of Dance and Associate in Environmental Studies Andea Olsen instruct listeners to do just that - let loose and dance. Olsen's talk, entitled Women/Bodies/Now, started off with a little movement and a piece of poetic advice.

"Don't let anyone take away your capacity to dance," began Olsen.

The purpose of the lecture was to explore the nervous system, which determines how individuals take in, interpret and respond to the events in their everyday lives. In a very fluid and unassuming manner, Olsen led her audience through the nervous system's functions and ways to achieve a balanced life.

There are three underlying principles that need to be understood in order to talk about the body, according to Olsen. Firstly, the body is a part of the earth. Secondly, the body has intrinsic intelligence, which has been developed for billions of years. Lastly, movement is fundamental to life.

Olsen commented that people try to control their bodies too much, when all that they really need to do is listen to it.

"Getting everyone to sit still and think hard in not necessarily the best way to learn," said Olsen. "Living in social situations can be very exhausting to the nervous system."

The nervous system is responsible for everything we interpret, according to Olsen. It determines how we construct our sense of self, others and the world. In an act reminiscent of a group therapy session, Olsen asked the audience to close their eyes and feel their breathing. Then she asked everyone to move and free up their spines.

The purpose of the spinal cord is to produce reflexive movement responses. If the spine is frozen, which can happen after over-stimulation, the sudden handicap can inhibit natural reflexes. People then devote more of their conscious thought to their actions when walking on ice or uneven ground, which reduces the time spent on more creative problem solving skills. Since the brainstem at the top of the spinal cord controls inhalation, if an individual's thoughts are focused on basic survival, difficulties in breathing properly can arise.

"War vets will often come home with a frozen spine," said Olsen. "And you can't think clearly if you hold your breath."

Olsen continued through the nervous system, pointing out how each component affects your overall reaction to the world.

The midbrain sits behind the forebrain and is responsible for fully shifting from one subject to another. Olsen talked about how people do not allow themselves to completely be in the moment, which inhibits their ability to perceive the world.

"It's hard to have an emotional connection with something when you are distracted," she said. "People don't take the time to stop and even glance at their surroundings as they hurry to their next activity."

A part of the nervous system that people often overlook is the gut, which actually has more nerves than the spinal cord. It sends more messages to the brain than it receives, which means it can override the decisions of the brain.

All parts of the nervous system work together in order to achieve a healthy life. "You have all these layers to you," said Olsen. "The only time you get sick is when you repress one of them."

One of the most important factors of a balanced life is how much the parasympathetic and sympathetic nervous systems are used. The function of the parasympathetic nervous system is to allow the body to rest and digest, while the sympathetic nervous system is stimulated by action - like running to class or giving a presentation.

"Women are often in sympathetic overdrive, because we feel the pressure to connect with other people or protect ourselves," said Olsen. "It all has to do with that sense of safety - if you are in overdrive, you can't take in anything new."

While some may believe a lack of dancing would not seem to be a problem at a school like Middlebury, Olsen's opening statement drove home the point of her entire lecture - we can not go through life allowing the external world to completely control our natural impulses.

So the next time we rush to a class or activity, maybe we will take a minute to stop, take a deep breath, look at our surroundings and be completely in the moment.