The impact that painting and dancing have on my Parkinson’s symptoms

In the words of Susan Monk Kidd, “I painted this image of “my brain on art” in response to the impact that painting and dancing have on my Parkinson’s symptoms. When I paint, my tremors nearly always fade and often disappear. When I dance, my gait and mood tend to improve in real time. Occasionally, these benefits will last for a few hours. 

I can’t explain what’s going on in my brain when these responses occur, but it’s as if my little grey cells sprout a small, temporary bloom of dopamine. 

This surprising phenomenon led me to read about the emerging fields of neuroaesthetics and neuroarts, which are deepening our understanding of how the arts measurably change the body, brain, and behavior. Susan Magsamen, founder of the International Arts + Mind Lab at John Hopkins University

School of Medicine envisions “a future in which the arts can deliver potent, accessible, proven health and well-being solutions.”

You don’t have to have a chronic disease in order to experience a sense of wellness from engaging with the arts, nor do you need to be good at them. Write a story, write a poem, listen to music, make music, draw, doodle, paint, visit a museum, dance…

If you have Parkinson’s, art won’t cure you, but aside from the sheer pleasure of indulging in art for art’s sake, you may find it turns down the volume on a symptom or two and brings a flowering of wellbeing, beautiful while it lasts.“

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