I dance to get out of my head, to shut off my thinking brain, and to discover what I am truly feeling. I dance to feel powerful. I dance for catharsis. To feel free, sexy, alive, and to shake off stress. 
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I took my first S Factor class in Los Angeles in 2007. The studio was a few years old, and pole was the "latest" exercise trend at the time. I was petrified to take my first class, but I thought, hey, this will make a good story. The room was dark, lit only by candles lining the edges of the room. The instructor opened the class by sharing that she grew up in a repressed and strict family, and this dance helped her open up and explore her sensual side in a safe environment. That resonated with me and so many others in the room. The warm up was incredible - one of the most challenging but also so accessible. I could not do our first trick. I was feeling slightly inadequate considering I thought I was in great shape at the time. Then we watched the teacher demo, and I was absolutely mesmorized - and determined to do what she could do. The fearlessness, the emotion, the passion, and the power her body expressed was something I had been looking for my whole life. I felt it was in my body too, and I wanted to let it out.