“Laughter is the best medicine.” I was thinking about laughter and that quote popped into my mind. I don’t remember if it’s from someplace specific or if it’s just one of those sayings that go around. Doesn’t matter, really, it’s a good one anyway. It’s meant to tell us that humor can help us feel better but it’s actually more true than most of us know. There are real emotional and physical health benefits to laughing. There is even something called Laughter Club where they do laughter therapy. Yes, go ahead and laugh; laughter therapy is a thing. In Laughter Club, the the focus is not even on humor, but on the physical exercise of laughing.

I’m sure we’ve all experienced the stress relieving effects of laughing, and here’s why that happens: the action of laughing actually relaxes physical tension, decreases stress hormones, and releases endorphins, which are feel-good hormones. That all makes sense. What I didn’t know until recently is that laughing can help balance blood pressure, and even strengthen the immune system by increasing the release of immune cells and antibodies. Wow! When we laugh, we breathe faster, which enhances oxygen intake- good for the brain. Recent research suggests that humor may improve short-term memory- that might be all the incentive I need to let go and laugh!

We laugh, usually when something is amusing, which makes us feel happy, and we all know that feeling happy is good for us. Amusing and humorous situations often occur in happy social settings which are good mood enhancers, too.  I know that sometimes when I’m tired, all I need at the end of the day is some funny TV to relax me. It’s easy, funny, and I don’t have to think too deeply when my brain is tired. And how many times is something so funny that we laugh until we cry? There is actually something very satisfying about moments like that- laughing with tears rolling down your face, to the point of exhaustion. Sometimes just thinking about a time I roared with laughter can set off a laughing fit all over again; I’m even smiling now but there are too many people around and bursting into hysterical laughter would just be too weird. So I will leave you with symbolic laughter for now: LOL!