EMDR Dance Parties: LA's Unconventional Wellness Trend
Psychotherapist merges trauma therapy with rave culture in experimental healing events.
1Warehouse wellness experiment
Psychotherapist Jane Garnett hosts EMDR dance parties in a converted 12,000 sq ft Marina del Rey warehouse, blending trauma therapy techniques with rave culture. The $25 events attract about 55 women for guided bilateral tapping, intention setting, and free-form dance. Garnett wears a silver jumpsuit while leading the sessions, which incorporate metronome rhythms, rose water spritzes, and eclectic music mixing electronica with African beats.
2EMDR meets nightlife
The events adapt Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapy - typically administered one-on-one - into group settings using dance as bilateral stimulation. Unlike clinical EMDR for PTSD, these parties focus on processing everyday emotional blocks. Garnett circulates among attendees dancing on gym equipment like Bosu balls and climbing ropes, creating what she calls 'the deepest, cheapest most fun therapy session' that combines movement, music and meditation.
3Ritualistic healing stations
Pre-dance activities include DIY tea ceremonies with hibiscus-ginger brew and dark chocolate, plus intention-setting altars featuring Ojai river stones, Malibu ocean water, and mezcal shots. Participants complete cards reflecting on courage and passion while Garnett explains the neuroscience behind bilateral movement's stress-reduction effects. The space transforms into what she describes as 'healing containers' merging rave culture's energy with therapeutic safety protocols.
4From Hollywood to healing
Garnett's unconventional path saw her transition from VP of production at DiCaprio's Appian Way to licensed therapist after feeling unfulfilled despite career success. She incorporates elements from plant medicine ceremonies and ecstatic dance traditions into her events. The parties represent her mission to add 'more body and dynamism' to therapy while bringing structure to underground dance spaces, calling it 'a bridge between worlds'.
5Participant experiences
Attendees like 40-year-old Lacey James report unexpected grounding effects from the bilateral movements despite initial skepticism about therapeutic raves. Fitness trainer Eva Lee, 39, valued the novelty and permission to play. Garnett emphasizes that such novelty stimulates neuroplasticity and mindfulness while reducing stress. The events conclude with deep breathing exercises, having evolved from Garnett's 20 years of clinical practice and personal healing journey.
6Therapeutic intentions
Garnett carefully distinguishes her parties from clinical trauma treatment, instead framing them as tools for self-relationship healing. The rituals incorporate storytelling elements from her film background, with participants literally writing new chapters through intention cards. She plans monthly events with enhanced EMDR components, seeing them as antidotes to modern life's 'performance over presence' mentality through what she calls 'celebrating aliveness'.
7Wellness industry crossover
The parties reflect growing intersections between nightlife and wellness, joining LA trends like mattress store sound baths. Garnett's approach combines somatic therapy techniques with rave culture's community aspects, using rhythm and uninhibited movement to regulate nervous systems. While not replacing traditional therapy, the events make therapeutic concepts accessible through what she terms 'pleasurable bilateral stimulation' in dynamic group settings.
8Future of experiential therapy
Garnett's model suggests possibilities for scaling therapeutic benefits through curated social experiences. By merging clinical knowledge with underground dance culture's energy, she creates contained spaces for emotional release. The success highlights demand for mental health interventions that bypass clinical settings' stigma while maintaining therapeutic integrity - a potential blueprint for innovative wellness programming that meets Gen X and millennial preferences.
Original article: Health & Wellness — EMDR Dance Parties: LA's Unconventional Wellness Trend