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By FatemaC
#10240
[size=18]Laughter - A Loving Medicine

We love to laugh and that's a fact. Laughter, especially in the company of others is without doubt one of life's most pleasurable activities. Laughter makes us feel good, relaxed and happy. Our friendships are measured by how we feel in each other's company and by how often we laugh. Good laughter is genuine because it is often sporadic. We like to laugh and we should do it far more often. Laughter it seems really is the best medicine.
Genuine warm laughter is in a class of its own. We can laugh delicately or enjoy a full belly laugh. We can laugh until the tears are rolling down our cheeks. A face breaking into a smile is a genuine good message in anybody's language. Laughter breaks down walls and dissolves barriers. Traditionally we all know that it makes us feel good, but did you know that laughter can actually make us well and even improve our health?
Very few of us go to the doctor because we laugh too much. As an expression of happiness or hilarity it is a sign that we are feeling good. What is the most difficult thing to do when we are down, feeling blue or just off colour? Who feels like laughing then? What is it that other people say to us in order to try and help' "Come on cheer up, let us have a smile at least, please!" Yet getting someone to laugh when they are depressed seems the most single difficult thing to do. Despite our best intention to remain glum however, break into a smile or inadvertently find something or someone funny and we have no choice. Our mood instantly lifts. Laughter, good will and happiness spills out of us, even if just for a few moments.
It is medically proven that laughter effects positive changes in our minds and bodies. Psychologists, scientists and doctors have been sporadically attracted to the notion that laughter actually does make you feel better. The benefits of laughter are quantifiable. Laughter works in very precise and practical ways.
Laughter is far more than just a sound that emanates from inside of us. When we laugh all manner of things are happening to our bodies. For a start it requires the co-ordination of many muscles throughout the body. One count has suggested that a good raucous laugh may even involve 600 muscles!.
Laughter can help you keep in trim. Laugh for an hour they say and you'll lose 500 calories. More than this, it really is good for relaxing and working our muscles. It is an aerobic activity! After a good bout of laughter our whole body contracts with the effort and afterwards begins to relax. Muscle tension is reduced, stress in the nerves is lessened and even our lungs have the benefit of a good workout.
Laughter affects your heart rate. Its effect on this vital muscle is that of a vigorous massage. During laughter our heartbeats quicken, blood pressure rises yet afterwards both out heart rates and blood pressure drop down to a point far lower than it was before. The reduction in tension brought about by laughter is equivalent of a cardiac workout.
A study was conducted amongst people who suffered from heart disease and heart related illness. It found that people who suffered from these conditions laughed 40% less than those who did not. As heart disease is a no.1 killer we might think hard about adding laughter to the regimes of regular exercise, not smoking and eating a sensible diet.
Laughter is a great safety valve. Being able to laugh at ourselves or the amiable antics of others is a sign that tension has been broken. Laughter brings with it a fresh approach to difficult situations and a new way of thinking. When we get anxious and angry, when we are far too serious, nervous energy and stress builds up inside us. Problems magnify and can blow up out of all proportion. How often have you seen the ice broken or tension relieved by the sound of whole-hearted laughter?
Laughter teaches love, inspires hope and enables us to share with one another. While our sense of humour may differ when language is involved, laughter can operate above and beyond language. Charles Chaplin was loved the world over for the fun he brought into people's lives. How much more pleasurable it is to laugh than it is to feel tense and worried.
Laughter has an amazing ability of enabling us to forget our worries and problems. Picture the concerned parent whose child falls off a bike. The parent comforts the child using laughter to help the child forget the pain. Laughter is a great distraction but it really can change your mood and even boost your energy
The physiological study of laughter is called GELOTOLOGY. By studying it and its effects on people's moods and behaviour we have begun to understand how it might work. The connection is simple to make. We have little difficulty making a connection after all between depression and illness. People who are down or stressed are in fact wearing their conditions on their sleeves. Doesn't it make sense that laughter could have the effect of actually healing and making us feel better'
Laughter boosts our immune systems. Psycho-neuro immunology studies the relationship between the brain and the immune system. This means it looks at how stress affects the nervous system. Through these studies it can be shown that laughter causes real physical changes in the autonomic nervous system. In a nutshell laughter lowers our stress hormones and gives our immune systems a boost.
When we laugh, we produce more natural killer cells. These attack viruses and tumour cells. We generate more T cells which combat infection. In general the stress hormones, cortisol and adrenaline which actually constrict blood vessels, decrease in the body as a result of laughter. Meanwhile more endorphins, which are natural pain relaxants, are produced when we laugh. Could laughter one day replace the need for anti-depressants and even reduce the need for pain killers?
We need to learn to laugh more. We should do this more easily and far more often. Did you know that an adult will laugh approximately 15 times day? A child will laugh 400 times a day! Think of that feeling we have when we laugh and smile. It is good feeling that leaves us relaxed, warm and light-hearted. As we get older we often find it more difficult to find time for laughter. Well the fact is if we are too busy to laugh we are too busy altogether. Genuine mirthful, merrymaking laughter equals a positive outlook on life. Eyes that sparkle with fun are attractive, appealing and a healthy sign of someone who enjoys life.
Above all the spirit of mirth calls us to live in the now. It stops us brooding about the past and prevents us worrying what might be just around the corner. Have you ever tried to tickle yourself? Laughter cannot be planned and it is at its best when it is spontaneous and genuine. We need to lighten up and take ourselves far less seriously. Of course we can't just laugh to a command. Still we can promote laughter as a tonic. Go out and read something humorous. Look up some jokes and share the best. Make a point of watching a funny video. There are a million ways to amuse ourselves that cost little or nothing. Laughter is free and happiness and well-being are ours if and when we want them. In fact it might be said that happiness and health go hand in hand. So, go on lighten up and laugh, at yourself if need be. You might be surprised how good it makes you feel.[/size
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Last edited by FatemaC on 04 May 2007, 04:34, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
By kulsham
#10376
i laugh once a day!
User avatar
By kulsham
#10377
btw really great article.. i had to zoom the screen in order to read all of it...
they look conjusted :lol: lol.. k don get angry on me

*hides*
By FatemaC
#10390
kulsham wrote:btw really great article.. i had to zoom the screen in order to read all of it...
they look conjusted :lol: lol.. k don get angry on me

*hides*
I am not angry.. i'll increase the font!!!
User avatar
By kulsham
#10417
thats :lol: so sweet of you
By FatemaC
#10436
hey no thanks btw frenz....
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