Cotabato earthquake: USM manages distress via dance therapy

One USM. One Family. – After a series of tragic earthquakes that rocked Cotabato since October 16, lives of USM stakeholders in areas affected were disrupted by this natural disaster. USM President Dr. Francisco Gil N. Garcia initiated the university-wide earthquake dance therapy held on Tuesday, November 12, 2019 at the USM Parade Grounds.

Classes in the University resumed on Monday, November 11, 2019 with debriefing activities facilitated by the faculty members in their respective classrooms facilitated by Prof. Yusuf Indin together with the Association of Psychology Students.

As part of the final psychological intervention on Tuesday, Prof. Indin in cooperation with the Psychology students and Institute of Sports, Physical Education, and Recreation led the earthquake dance therapy with the USM faculty, staff, and students together with the pupils of the Gender Child Care Center as the participants.

This activity highlighted how integrating dance with psychology can assist in recovery from natural disasters. With every strut, sway, and grind, the goal was to help ease the trauma and fear brought by this horrible experience.

While an earthquake can result to tremendous hardship and loss, this intervention aimed to refocus on something positive and persevere in our ability to get through the challenging days ahead.