YOUR WHOLE BODY WANTS YOU TO LAUGH!

We have always been told that the laughter is the best medicine, but there’s more to it than just raising your spirits for a couple of minutes. You go to a park, you see children running around, laughing away and living every moment of it. On the other hand, you see their parents stressed, tired, or rushed and that’s what you get from the busy, modern life.

In fact, laughter gives you many amazing beneficial effects. When you laugh, your brain releases endorphins. Endorphins are responsible for making you feel happy, they create the feelings of joy and euphoria, and they bring down your stress levels in the process.  So, never turn away from a person who helps you put a smile on your face. A good laugh reduces the level of cortisol, epinephrine (adrenaline) and dopamine, and increases the production of serotonin and endorphins which reduce effects of stress, and helps you stay relaxed. 

When you laugh, as many as 15 facial muscles gets their act together and provides you a full-blown workout which stimulates blood circulation. So, it won't be a bad idea to tune into some laughter shows or comedy podcasts every now and then to get yourself unwound. Quite a few studies are there to validate the pain relieving effects of laughter.  They say watching comedy shows assists both children and adults to tolerate pain more easily.

Laughter has been found to benefit people who suffer from heart disease. When you laugh, the blood flow in your body increases, circulation improves and your blood pressure rises. But when you are done with laughing, your blood pressure goes back to its baseline. This relaxing effect reduces the likelihood of heart disease. A 15-minute laughter session a day is as important for your heart as 30 minutes of exercise 3 times a week.

You can improve you immune system with a regular dose of laughter. Laughing does improve the body’s natural defence mechanism by increasing the amount of immunoglobulins and T cells in your body. This helps ward off infections, fighting diseases  like common cold, or even cancer.

Who doesn't want the company of a funny guy? If you have a good sense of humor, chances are you become more productive & creative at work, a better communicator and team player, and you make loads of friends where ever you go. Often there is a clearcut relation between laughter and the release of the empathy hormone, oxytocin. It helps bond individuals and groups together. A little laughter is great for building great teams, be they in a community or at work.

Having a good laughing session just before sleep is like getting an aerobic workout, it energises you in that short period of time and helps you to get a deep, restful sleep. 

There you go, laughing not only lifts your spirits but also the spirit of those around us. It is the shortest possible distance between two people. Get surrounded by happier bunch of people, because they lift the spirit of those who are around. A smile or laugh shared is a smile or laugh doubled.

"To truly laugh, you must be able to take your pain, and play with it!"