Just add laughter...
Tips for a happier, healthier you.
Laughter - a little thing that can make a massive difference in our every day and how we feel.
Happier, lighter, more connected.
It can soothe our souls, make us more productive, and even more attractive!
We can all do it, almost anywhere, it’s free, and with zero side effects.
There’s Laughter Yoga, Laughter Meditation, Laughter Therapy, facilitators, universities, and online courses…
Experts and coaches, reports and studies, and oodles of fascinating stats!
Random Facts + Good Reasons for More Laughing:
Laughter improves mood almost immediately, lowering stress and anxiety.
In addition to reducing negative emotions, laughing also increases positive emotions.
Genuine laughter or faking it makes little difference to our body, the healthy benefits are the same. Fake it till you make it!
Laughter truly is contagious. We’re wired to mirror one another as a way of promoting social bonding. We want to belong.
We’re 30 times more likely to laugh with others than by ourselves.
Laughter is a universal language. Everyone can ‘speak’ it. A study has found 65 animal species that laugh too!
Have you ever laughed so hard it hurt? It’s a mini workout engaging our diaphragm, and flexing our abdominal and oblique muscles. Lol to a flatter tummy?
Weak with laughter is not just a metaphor. Laughter can trigger a reflex that brings many of our muscles to the point of collapse, making us sway or fall over.
Laughter releases a cocktail of ‘feel-good’ hormones into our bloodstream, stabilizing our mood, and boosting happiness and well-being. It can also decrease levels of cortisol, the stress hormone, leading to a calmer, more relaxed state of mind.
Humour is sexy. We appear more attractive to others when we laugh.
We burn up to 40 calories every 15 mins when laughing - how much is that in chocolate? I’ve calculated its equivalent to approximately ⅕ of a 100 gms 70-85% dark chocolate bar. I think… Would a diagram be helpful?
Laughter truly is the best medicine. Studies prove it is an effective coping strategy in hospitals and aged care facilities, relieving fear and pain, and boosting resilience.
Clown Doctors focus on the patient, not the illness. Dr Silly Billy and Dr Toot
Laughing at traumatic life events doesn’t mean we ignore them, but allows us to endure them through playfulness and a changed perception of life’s challenges.
Researcher and Blue Zones author, Dan Buettner, reveals that daily laughter is one of the commonalities contributing to vitality and longevity among centenarians.
Laughter is serious business. Corporate wellness programs use laughter to strengthen teams, reduce workplace stress, and boost employee morale and productivity.
Happier workers are 12% more productive. Take note HR peeps.
According to a study in the Harvard Business Review, leaders with a sense of humour are seen as 27% more motivating.
Laughter improves memory recall by 20%.
A giggle is good for the heart releasing endorphins which reduce inflammation, and help the heart and blood vessels relax.
When we use humour in conversation, we build stronger connections more quickly, making us more candid and more personal.
With the proper approach, laughter can be used to diffuse a highly charged situation… watch Presiden Bill Clinton and President Boris Yeltsin lol.
In her book Top 5 Regrets of The Dying, author and palliative care worker Bronnie Ware says her patients “longed to laugh properly and have silliness in their life again”.
‘Almost every type of laughing’ Which one are you?
Little things we can do:
Watch a funny movie, or go to a live comedy show. Any faves you’d like to share…
Meet up with friends and don’t be afraid to be silly.
Read comedy before bed - laughter relaxes us improving sleep. I loved The Rosie Project ! Your fave comedy books?
Click here to try out a 1-minute laughter workout. I dare you not to laugh!
Zoom into the Laughter Club, founded by Indian physician Dr Madan Kataria.
Share some humour with a loved one who is unwell - the natural pick-me-up!
Play with children or pets.
Host a game night with friends - charades is always FUN!
Grab a copy of Humour, Seriously written by behavioural scientist Jennifer Aaker and corporate strategist Naomi Bagdonas, who teach ‘Humor: Serious Business’ at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business.
Read The Humor Habit to rewire your brain for more fun and less stress.
Catch-up on your favourite TV comedy; reruns are great!
Look at old pictures; reminiscing and retro looks usually make us laugh.
Hope there’s something here that’ll inspire you to add more laughter to your day - you might even like to keep track of how you’re feeling with a laughter journal…
“A good laugh is sunshine in the house” William Thackeray
Wishing you sunshine!
Thank you and muchas gracias amigos :