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Reducing Stress with Laughter
Is there too much stress in your life? Is everything piling up and
weighing you down? Perhaps you’ve tried pharmaceutical and herbal
remedies, but nothing seems to work. You should try a proven natural
therapy that has been used for generations to relive stress and make you
feel better. So what is this miracle cure that makes us feel so great?
It’s laughter. Laughter is nature’s way of easing tension and helping us
relax. So take some time to laugh every day and you’ll be feeling better
in no time.
So how does laughter work exactly? Well, laughter works on several
levels to make us feel better and less stressed. First, laughter works
to relieve stress physically. When we laugh, stress hormones in our
blood, like cortisol, are actually reduced. Laughter also gives us a
mini workout, which improves out health and releases hormones that make
us feel happier. Lastly, when we laugh, it helps boost our immune
system. The stronger our immune system is, the better we feel and the
more prepared we are to combat stress.
Laughter helps us emotionally release stress as well. Our bodies are
designed to release excess emotions physically through acts such as
laughing and crying. When we laugh, it releases some of our negative
emotions as well. It can also change the thoughts that promote our
emotions. Laughter helps us think more positively, worry less, and be
less stressed. Even if laughter doesn’t promote positive thinking, it
can make us forget about our negative thoughts and feel better.
If you’re laughing with friends or loved ones, you are also promoting
social bonding. When we are bonded with people, it promotes supportive
relationships that can make us feel more supported and less burdened, so
we feel less stressed out about our situation.
So what do you do if life just isn’t that funny? What if you just can’t
find anything to laugh at? You fake it. That’s right, fake laughing.
Consider one study done on forced laughter. Participants were asked to
watch a movie and either not laugh at anything or laugh at the jokes
whether they thought they were funny or not. After the movie,
participants filled out a survey on how much they liked the movie.
Believe it or not the people who laughed rated the movie as
significantly better and funnier. Laughing, forced or not, improves the
way you view the world and helps to fight stress from your everyday
life.
In addition to stress relief, laughing has also been show to help you
eat less, boost your immune system, increase your pain threshold, and
even help you heal faster. So don’t delay. Whether it means going to a
funny movie or laughing for no good reason at all, start laughing your
way to a less stressful life today.
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