Laughter: steps to self-cure and a happier life

* I explained the physiological and medical relationship between laughter and a healthier body and mind in my previous publication.

* Click here to read the previous publication

Start a healthier and happier life by allowing yourself the privilege of a good laugh and making those around you laugh.

Checklist for starting a laugh:

There are obvious occasions in life that are clearly not an occasion for laughter. These sad or traumatic events or occasions are excluded from the gray zone of ordinary life. Most events don’t carry an overwhelming sense of either sadness or delight and would be included in this so called grey zone of ordinary life. What is true however, if we do not decide if these events are serious enough to affect our emotional well-being, our emotions will be in “limbo” and undecided how to interpret or experience the event. Your hipothalamus, will interpret this most likely as a negative experience and the endorphine (feel-happy-hormone) levels as well as the production of new endorphine in your brain will gradually reduce. You will gradually start to feel more negative and unhappy about the event. That is why problems creates more problems if you do not deal with it immediately. Your brain goes easily into a melancholic limbo!

Early decision making and managing the negative experiences in our lives is crucial for a healthy mind and to keep a healthy balance in life.

So, if you think that whatever makes you unhappy or sad or withhold a good laugh consider the following…

Step 1: ASK THE QUESTION:

When you find yourself taken over by what seems to be a horrible problem, ask these questions:

Step 2:  KNOW THE ANSWER:

Make sure you know the answer to the questions above. If the answer to these are NO – you are dealing most likely with an event in the grey-zone of life… things that creates a negative or unhappy feeling, but appraising this (like answering the questions above) makes you realise that these are not life-threatening or justifiable sad occasions. When you decided about the value of allowing yourself and those around you to become upset and unhappy you will find it easier to correct your negative emotion or experience. This can be done by following the following simple adjustments:

Step 3: GET GRIP AND TAKE CONTROL:

• Deal with your stress or the negative experience. Stress is a major impediment to humor and laughter.
• Keep things in perspective. Many things in life are beyond our control—particularly the behavior of other people. While you might think taking the weight of the world on your shoulders is admirable, in the long run it’s unrealistic, unproductive, unhealthy, and even egotistical.
• Laugh at yourself. Share your embarrassing moments. The best way to take ourselves less seriously is talk about times when we took ourselves too seriously.
• Attempt to laugh at situations rather than bemoan them. Look for the humor in a bad situation, the irony and absurdity of life. This will help improve your mood and the mood of those around you.
• Pay attention to children and emulate them. They are the experts on playing, taking life lightly, and laughing.
• Surround yourself with reminders to lighten up. Keep a toy on your desk or in your car. Look for those funny video clips in your inbox. Choose a computer screensaver that makes you laugh. Frame photos of you and your family or friends having fun. Find them on YouTube and get more people into your office to go louder … I call this a group endorphine session!!

BOTTOM LINE:

Laughter, play and have fun with others changes the way we experience life and the way people experience you:

• it makes life more enjoyable
• it helps you solve problems
• it connects you with others
• it forces you to be more creative.

People who incorporate laughter, humour and play into their daily lives find that it renews them and all of their relationships.

* All my publications are copyright protected, but I love to share my knowledge with all – please forward the link to friends or family …or somebody you know who might find this helpful.