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Laughter is a Game Changer
Laughter is a game changer. It counters stress and relieves pain. Humor stimulates the brain, aids memory, expands awareness and changes perception. Laughing elevates mood, creates a bond between people and has multiple physical benefits.
In 1964 Norman Cousins, editor of The Saturday Review, was diagnosed with a rare degenerative disease. Chance of recovery? 1 in 500. He could expect to die a slow, painful death. But he didn’t. Cousins believed in the biochemical effect of thoughts and emotions. When he discovered that 10 minutes of hearty laughter gave him 2 hours of pain-free sleep, he checked out of the hospital and into a hotel. Along with massive doses of Vitamin C to build his immune system, he watched sitcoms and and read humorous essays and books. You can read the whole story of the man who laughed himself back to health, in Norman Cousins’ book Anatomy of an Illness.
For Cousins, laughter was a game changer. And it can be for you too. Thanks to him, the medical community took note of the power of laughter. And now we have scientific research to prove it. Among its many positive effects, laughter is an antidote to stress, inflammation and pain. It boosts the immune system and increases blood flow, helping to reduce the risk of stroke and heart attack.
Laughter is a game changer. Seeing the humor in life, laughing more is the fastest, easiest way to change your experience and behavior. Laughing lifts spirits and instantly diminishes depression and anger. When we feel good, we are kinder, more generous and make better decisions.
“Humor is the great thing, the saving thing. The minute it crops up, all our irritation and resentments slip away, and a sunny spirit takes their place.” Mark Twain
Wow! If laughter can do so much, why aren’t we laughing? Adults laugh an average of 17.5 times a day while children laugh hundreds of times in the course of a day. Our grandparents laughed three times more than we do. What happened??? Are we taking life too seriously?
“I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells. Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living, it’s a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope. Which is what I do, and that enables you to laugh at life’s realities.” Dr. Seuss
We Need More Laughter
Aside from the health benefits, laughter dispels negativity, promotes open-mindedness and positive thinking. It makes us look at things from a different angle. In shifting perception, humor can change emotions.
Laughing increases cope-ability. Seeing the humor in a situation alleviates anxiety and strengthens the ability to deal with it. Just anticipating a humorous experience alleviates stress. When people were told they would soon be shown a funny movie, they immediately started producing feel good hormones that held for up to 24 hours!
Laughter is cathartic. It undoes harmful biochemical changes that come from holding negative thoughts and painful feelings.“If it were not for these stories, jokes, jests, I should die; they give vent – are the vents – of my moods and gloom.” Abraham Lincoln
Following one of my laughter lectures, a gentleman told me that he was drowning in grief after his wife died. He was watching television one day and something made him laugh out loud. Immediately, he noticed that he felt better, the best he’d felt in months. Thereafter, he embarked on his own healing through humor path. As he started focusing on all the good times and humorous experiences he and his wife had shared, he began smiling and laughing again. The more he laughed, the more the burden of sorrow eased.
“Laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face.” Victor Hugo
Laughter is a stress buster. It shakes up the insides, strengthens the immune system, and counters pain. It massages internal organs, works the respiratory system and improves cardiovascular flexibility. As if all that isn’t enough, laughter can help you lose weight. Belly laughing is aerobic exercise. It burns calories and builds abdominal and back muscles.
Laughter is socially bonding. It’s contagious. Like yawning, we automatically mimic it. The louder the laughter, the harder it is to suppress the urge to laugh. When people laugh together, aggression gives way to harmony.
Laughter is a game changer. Whether we’re laughing or making someone else laugh, we feel better. People who laugh easily are healthier, happier and more resilient so…
Go play. Have fun. Laugh a lot.
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