“Laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face.” ~Victor Hugo
“It is impossible for you to be angry and laugh at the same time. Anger and laughter are mutually exclusive and you have the power to choose either.” ~Wayne Dyer
“The most wasted of all days is one without laughter.” ~e.e. Cummings
“So many tangles in life are ultimately hopeless that we have no appropriate sword other than laughter.” ~Gordon W. Allport
“To make a mistake is human; to stumble is commonplace; to be able to laugh at yourself is maturity.” ~William Arthur Ward
“If you’re serious, you really understand that it’s important that you laugh as much as possible and admit that you’re the funniest person you ever met. You have to laugh. Admit you’re funny. Otherwise, you die in solemnity.” ~Maya Angelou
Ever notice how serious we can get at times? Well I do, especially being so involved in the Funeral business with my husband and coaching many clients on grief.
Life can get pretty serious, so serious that we do actually forget to laugh and fail to remember how good it feels.
I love nothing more than laughing so hard I am brought to tears. It is like a breath of fresh air, and in that moment all of your problems and worries just seem to disappear.
I remember one night way back in my corporate days, working very late into the night and my boss calling us into his office for a pow-wow. On his table was a large edition of a Far Side comic strip book. Remember them? I couldn’t resist and opened it up and started to read. I am not sure if it was fatigue or what I was reading was actually funny but it didn’t matter…I laughed and laughed and laughed some more. It was a much needed break from a long night, and it energized me enough to keep going.
You know the saying: “Laughter is the best medicine.” Well I happen to believe strongly in this.
According to Sondra Kornbalt in her book A Better Brain at any Age: The Holistic Way to Improve your Memory, Reduce Stress, and Sharpen your Wits (Conari Press, 2009), laughter can:
- Lower blood pressure
- Increase vascular blood flow and oxygenation of the blood
- Give a workout to the diaphragm and abdominal, respiratory, facial, leg, and back muscles
- Reduce certain stress hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline
- Increase the response of tumor- and disease-killing cells such as Gamma-interferon and T-cells
- Defend against respiratory infections–even reducing the frequency of colds–by immunoglobulon in saliva.
- Increase memory and learning; in a study at Johns Hopkins University Medical School, humor during instruction led to increased test scores
- Improve alertness, creativity, and memory
It is that simple. Get laughing. Your health depends on it.
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