A Weston Hospicecare patient has expressed how much he enjoys taking part in the expressive movement therapy class when he attends the day hospice service.

Martyn Brummell, aged 75, attends the hospice each week to receive treatment for, and advice about how to live with, motor neurone disease.

Martyn has been attending the hospice for more than 2 years and for much of that time he has taken part in EMT which allows him to keep active like he was before his diagnosis.

He said: “The enjoyment I get out of EMT is immense, and it gives me such joy. It allows me to go into my own world, particularly when music is played.

“I think of all the things I was able to do like swimming, running, boxing, table tennis and bowls.

“It keeps alive all the things I was able to do. We have so much fun with each other and the connection is so strong with the group.”

EMT is based on the principles of dance movement psychotherapy and is conducted by a registered dance movement psychotherapist.

The class is conducted at the hospice by therapist Linsey Clark and she said: “The group is held within a person-centred therapeutic approach, this focuses on compassion, respect, acceptance and enabling autonomy by providing space for the participants to take the lead in their own process.

“It is a weekly therapy group for people with life-limiting illnesses, which offers participants a chance to relax, express themselves and share with others through music, words, gentle movement and gestures, and creativity.

“This group offers each person the chance to find their own ways to express their difficulties and restore a sense of themselves, beyond the limitations of the spoken word and can help support people’s physical, emotional, social and spiritual well-being.”

Although it is primarily designed for individual relief, Martyn particularly enjoys the connection he feels with others taking part.

He said: “We have so much fun with each other and the connection is so strong with the group.

“I know it is not for everyone, but for those who have not tried it, please give it a go you might be surprised.”