Why You Should Laugh More
Deanna Mascle
I have long been a fan of the Reader's Digest "Laughter, the
Best Medicine" column and often suspected that laughter was
good for me. After all, I was raised on the mantra "the family
that laughs together, stays together" and my family possesses a
long list of "in" jokes that require nothing more than a catch
phrase to crack up the whole clan.
However, now my suspicion that laughter is good for me can
actually be backed up by scientific evidence.
Humor can improve memory. This would explain why so many
advertisers spend a great deal of time and money on funny ads
and gimmicks. It might also explain why so many of our favorite
teachers also happened to be funny. We were learning while we
laughed and it didn't hurt a bit!
Humor can also help us be more creative. Often humor makes us
look at ourselves or our world in a slightly different way
which can be both enlightening and challenging to our brains.
If amused we are more likely to open our minds up and think
outside the box.
Laughter is a great way to relieve stress. We know there are
many other ways but laughter is socially acceptable in most
situations. Laughing actually reduces levels of certain stress
hormones. It provides a safe release for the flow of stress
hormones and the fight-or-flight compounds that come into
action in times of trouble or anger.
Laughter can also make you healthier by boosting your immune
system. Unbelievably, when you are laughing, natural killer
cells that destroy tumors and viruses increase and brings
balance to all the components of the immune system. In
addition, laughing can also provide a pretty good aerobic
workout. Still more healthful benefits of laughter include
lowering your blood pressure, increasing vascular blood flow,
and increasing oxygenation of the blood which enables the body
to carry on healing activities for itself.
Shared laughter promotes bonding and unity between and among
people. Co-workers who laugh together and families that share a
common bond of humor also work more cohesively and overcome
difficulty more effectively. Laughter and humor can also open
the door for the sharing of ideas and emotions. Many people
feel more comfortable communicating thoughts and concerns while
the mood of the group is happy and relaxed.
Finally, there is the simple truth that laughter can be a great
antidote to depression and unhappiness. While laughter cannot
heal chemical imbalances it can help lift your mood and
spirits. Often a good laugh will not only jog you out of your
gloomy mood it may also jog your creative impulse and help you
find a solution to the cause of your unhappiness.
Instead of being gloomy and frustrated because there is no
perceived solution, laughing lifts you up out of your pool of
problems and places you on solid ground where you can gain some
new insights. Under conditions of happiness it is much easier to
think creatively around a problem than when your mind is filled
with thoughts of helplessness or worthlessness.
Did you know the average person laughs 17 times a day? Are you
above or below average? Perhaps you need to spend more time
with funny people or maybe you just need to open yourself to
the humor of life around you. Bring more laughter into your
life and reap the benefits of improved memory, increased
creativity, decreased stress, improved health and stronger
relationships.
About The Author: Deanna Mascle hopes you will find more
reasons to smile at her blog at
http://SmilesByDawggone.com
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