There are a lot of problems, stresses, and anxiety that today’s world creates with millions of people around the globe. The sense of depression, dejection, gloom, and melancholy are pervasive in just about whatever place you go.

There is good news! Laughter, comedy, and humor has been proven to be a terrific way to counteract these negative, and sometimes hurtful, mindsets.

There are many, many benefits of laughter such as:

A. Increase Blood Flow: This in turn reduces your stress hormones, lowers your blood pressure and activates your immune system.

B. Laughter Reduces Pain: Exercise acts as a natural painkiller and so does laughter. Both work in the same way as a prescription or over-the-counter painkiller in the way they chemically affect the cell receptors in your brain and body. The body creates a naturally occurring hormone dopamine to relieve pain. We can increase our dopamine levels through both exercise and laughter, and reduce pain naturally. An article in the New England Medical Journal found that 10 minutes of belly laughter relieved pain for up to two hours!

C. Laughter can Prevent Disease:

Research has found laughter can improve your health and prevent disease by:

  1. Lowering blood pressure
  2. Releasing muscle tension
  3. Increasing feel-good hormones (dopamine, endorphins)
  4. Decreasing stress hormones
  5. Boosting the immune system
  6. Burning calories, and
  7. Giving an overall sense of well-being.

Also, laughter has been found to reduce tumors, increase the effectiveness of cancer treatments, and lengthen the lives of cancer patients.

FIND THE FUNNY IN LIFE!

D. Laughter Improves Emotional Health

Laughter is a factor of emotional healing. Whenever you start to feel sad, despondent or depressed, make yourself laugh. 

1. Dad, are we pyromaniacs? Yes, we arson.

2. What do you call a pig with laryngitis? Disgruntled.

3. A commander walks into a bar and orders everyone around.

4. Never buy flowers from a monk. Only you can prevent florist friars.

5. How much did the pirate pay to get his ears pierced? A buccaneer.

6. I once worked at a cheap pizza shop to get by. I kneaded the dough.

7. When I told my contractor I didn’t want carpeted steps, he gave me a blank stare.

8. Bono and The Edge walk into a Dublin bar and the bartender says, “Oh no, not U2 again.”

9. Prison is just one word to you, but for some people, it’s a whole sentence.

10. I’m trying to organize a hide and seek tournament, but good players are really hard to find.

11. I got over my addiction to chocolate, marshmallows, and nuts. I won’t lie, it was a rocky road.

12. What do you say to comfort a friend who’s struggling with grammar? There, their, they’re.

13. I went to the toy store and asked the assistant where the Schwarznegger dolls are and he replied, “Aisle B, back.”

14. What did the surgeon say to the patient who insisted on closing up her own incision? Suture self.

15. I’ve started telling everyone about the benefits of eating dried grapes. It’s all about raisin awareness.

 

Laughter Really is GOOD FOR THE SOUL!!!

Photo Credit; Rodolfo Quirós: https://www.pexels.com/photo/photo-of-a-woman-laughing-wearing-black-top-2219118/