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Laugh Yourself to Health

Guest post by: John Toomey

Article Overview: When was the last time you enjoyed a Belly Laugh? When did you laugh so hard you could not draw breath or you had tears running down your cheeks. Some say taht if this happens at least once per day you will always be healthy. HAve you let your life become so serious taht you never laugh any more?

Laugh Yourself to Health

The link between your state of mind and the health of your body is now undeniable. Through an exciting new field of medicine called Psycho-Neuro-Immunology, health professionals have identified the importance of a healthy mind in maintaining a healthy body.

Norman Cousins, a former medical writer was stricken with a life threatening collagen disease in 1964. He decided that Hospital was too depressing, so with his doctor’s advice, checked into a hotel and dosed himself up with large doses of laughter and vitamin C. He basically watched Marx brothers movies and classic Candid Camera programs al day. He noticed that a 10-minute belly laugh gave him 2 hours of pain relief. He slowly eliminated painkillers and other drugs and slowly recovered.

How long is it since you had a Belly Laugh, where you laughed so hard you couldn’t draw breath, or had tears running down your face? Australians were once known as an irreverent lot who made a joke of most things and didn’t take life too seriously. Perhaps that was part of our Irish heritage. In recent years, you may find it difficult to meet a person who can remember their last good belly laugh.

Laughter is the Best Medicine

When we laugh, especially when we really let ourselves go, our endocrine system releases Endorphins and Encephalins in the brain. These substances reduce feelings of stress, relax the body and leave behind a sense of euphoria.

So, when you are stressed and feeling under pressure, although you may not feel like it, finding a way to laugh is a very smart solution.

Some Keys to Finding Laughter

 Learning to Laugh at Ridiculous People instead of allowing them to upset you.
 Learning to Laugh at Ridiculous Situations as opposed to becoming stressed and upset by them.
 Laugh with your Customers and with Your Family?
 Have you ever heard your difficult customers laugh? Have you ever tried to make them laugh?
 How can you make customers and family laugh?
 Do you have a “joke per day” that you can share with your customers, work mates, family and friends.
 Comedy videos and audiotapes are a useful source of laughter.
 Turn on a comedy tape or 89.9**augh Radio in the car to take your mind away from the pressures of the day.

** 89.9 is not on all year round. It normally runs in 2 to 4 week blocks every 2 or 3 months.


Life Wasn’t Meant to be Serious

In this day and age where economics rules, we are often forced to be very serious most of the time. Whilst it is important to meet your employer’s objectives, it is also important to be mindful of your health and well being. Remember the old saying, “Families who play together, stay together.” This can be carried through to life at work and with your friends.

Some Useful Tips

 Share a Robyn Williams, Billy Connelly or other humorous vide with some friends.
 Try a few practical jokes. As long as they do not hurt anyone, or make someone a victim, practical jokes are great for breaking down barriers and help others (and ourselves) to laugh at themselves.
 Share comic strips with others.
 Talk to your employer about playing comedy tapes as an alternative to the company’s normal “on-hold” message. This, at least, makes things a little more bearable for callers when placed on hold. It also gives you the opportunity to share a laugh with the caller.
 Organise nights out to comedy venues. Melbourne is blessed with some of the best comedy in the world, so use it.
 Read books by people who tell stories of their lives. These stories are often very up lifting and loaded with comic anecdotes.
 Meet with friends over light refreshments or a meal and have a session of recollecting “funny experiences”.

You are never too old to laugh. It is one of the few infectious things that cannot make you sick.

Reference: Hoptman, Neal and Carla, Help Yourself to Health, Millennium Books, Alexandria, NSW, 1996.

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