Laugh Your Way to Improved Health and Happiness

Laughter is free, fun, and good for your health. Here are some of the things laughter can do for you, and some ways to bring more joy into your life.

Benefits of Laughter

1. Boost your immune system. Research on the connection between laughter and physical health is still ongoing, but some benefits are clear. Laughing helps to fight stress and may enhance your immune response. This may make you more resistant to colds and other illnesses.

2. Diminish pain. Laughing is an effective way to decrease pain. Many individuals living with chronic pain report that humor helps make their experiences more bearable. Some hospitals even offer laughter therapy to complement conventional treatments for cancer and other conditions.

3. Get a little workout. Every time you chuckle, you boost your heart rate and increase your circulation, which burns more calories than just sitting still. You still need to exercise, but every little bit helps.

4. Improve your mood. Hilarity has a powerful effect on your emotional state. A good laugh instantly relaxes your whole body. Plus, those good feelings last, and may make you feel more positive for hours afterward.

5. Enhance resilience. Learning to see the humor in difficult events is an excellent coping mechanism. Having a flexible outlook will help you bounce back faster from disappointments.

6. Strengthen relationships. Taking pleasure in each other’s company draws people closer together. Laughing together helps us to connect, share happy memories, and appreciate the good things around us.

7. Spread joy to others. Laughing is almost as contagious as yawning. You’re bound to have a good effect on those around you if you use humor appropriately. Smiling and laughing also make you appear more approachable so you’ll get plenty of opportunities to cheer up others.

Ways to Laugh More in Your Daily Life

1. Smile. It’s easier to break out laughing when you’re already smiling. Make a habit of relaxing your face into a subtle smile. You’ll boost your mood and start to notice more things to smile about naturally.

2. Watch funny movies and other media. It’s always good to learn from the experts. Watch great comedy films, read cartoons, or visit a comedy club.

3. Look for the humor in ordinary situations. Cultivate a jovial outlook. Observe your surroundings so that you notice the unexpected and incongruous events of daily life. Practice exaggerating a typical conversation so that it becomes funny.

4. Take yourself less seriously. You can be conscientious and light-hearted. Learn to poke fun at yourself and your idiosyncrasies. Keep minor setbacks in perspective.

5. Practice being silly. If you have children or pets, join in their games or make up silly stories to tell them. Put a whimsical decoration like a funny calendar or wind-up toy in your office or study to amuse you.

6. Share laughter with the people around you. Seek out people whom you find funny. Take a break at work to join in with people who are obviously having a good time. Tell your spouse a funny story from your day when you get home.

7. Apply humor to challenging situations. Humor is even more important on tough days. You can recognize a serious situation and act responsibly while considering how your circumstances might appear funny in the future or if it was happening in a movie.

Improve your quality of life by laughing more. Laughter is good for your health and easy to share with everyone around you.