Upgrade Your Life With a Daily Dose of Laughter
Laughter kills stress and develops resilience
Have you ever noticed that after a good laugh you feel relaxed?
Laughter is the most effective stress-buster. When we laugh, happy hormones called endorphins are released that alleviate emotional, physical, and psychological pain. You are laughing means you are experiencing enormous joy inside you. It is an expression of happiness.
Can you remember when did you have a really good laugh? Was that a funny movie, or your stupid friend with a stupid joke — what made you laugh your heart out?
In this stressful time, laughter can be a great tool to battle monotony and depression. People say laughter is the best medicine as it triggers your physical and mental health in no time. It’s one of the best ways to increase resilience.
Laughter can upgrade your personality as well. It can make you attractive to others. I mean, seriously, no one wants to spend time with a gloomy boring person.
The good thing is you don’t need to be a comedian to introduce laughter into your life. Just practice a few things regularly to make them a habit. Then, you are all done. But before jumping into that, why not know some benefits of laughter?
Let’s dive in.
Different benefits of laughter
Laughter has numerous physical, psychological, and social benefits. I am going to mention a few in the following for you.
Laughter relaxes your body
It gives you a sense of relief. You feel lighter after a good laugh. It happens because laughter involves deep exhalations, which lower the heart rate and blood pressure to take you to a calmer state. A good laugh can keep your muscles relaxed for up to 45 minutes after.
Laughter burns calories
Isn’t it interesting that when you laugh really hard, your stomach muscles expand and contract and therefore burn calories? Moreover, when you laugh hard, your whole body gets involved, including your jaws, brain, torso, lungs, and even blood vessels.
A study says uncontrollable howls of laughter can cause a calorie burn rate as high as 120 calories per hour.
Laughter boosts your immune system
In an article, Judy Lemke, MS, LPC, LCSW, says laughing encourages healing and can improve our immune system. It also increases the number of antibody-producing cells and enhances the effectiveness of T-cells in the immune system.
Laughter lowers your stress and improves your mood
Laughter reduces the level of stress hormones like cortisol, epinephrine (adrenaline), dopamine, and growth hormones. It also enhances the production of serotonin, a natural anti-depressant that produces a general sense of well-being and keeps one optimistic. Therefore, a small dose of laughter improves your mood instantly.
Laughter reduces the chances of conflict
If you are a person with good humor, you will reduce the chances of conflict in your personal and professional life. Humorous people can manage a tense situation well. Moreover, laughter is contagious. It brings people together and strengthens relationships.
Laughter makes you an attractive person
When you laugh while having a conversation with your friends and family, it adds joy, vitality, and resilience to your relationships with them.
Laughter is an effective way to unite people and make a lasting impact on them. It makes you attractive and desired. Besides, it heals resentments, disagreements, and hurts, creating positive feelings and powerful bonds.
How to take a daily dose of laughter
There are tons of ways to help you out. But the first thing you need is the willingness to get out of your boring face and ready to smile. Here I am telling you the ways I practice in my day-to-day life. It helps me to spice up my day and upgrade my mood when I feel down.
Call a friend and revisit the good old days
I do it frequently. Though I am connected to most of my friends through different social media app, I call them at least once a week and recall the good-old-days we spent together. And it happens every time that some topics come up, and we end up laughing out loud.
I highly suggest you do the same. It will strengthen your relationship with your friends, and you will have lots of fun for sure. A simple call to your friend can make your day and uplift your mood when you feel stressed.
Watch a good sitcom
Lately, I am rewatching one of my favorite sitcoms The Big Bang Theory. Oh, I love it. The science-nerds Sheldon, Leonard, Howard, Raj, and their awkward ways of doing things will definitely put a smile on your face. I randomly see an episode when I got some free time.
You may rewatch any of your favorite sitcoms or start watching a new one. You don’t have to watch the series all at once. You can watch one episode a day. It’s an effective way to introduce laughter to your monotonous daily life.
Spend time with your children or pet
Children are like little comedians. They will play with you, ask you thousands of questions that you never thought before, and at one point, you will start laughing seeing their activities.
Pets are the same. I have adopted a cute cat a few weeks ago, and trust me — it always entertains me one way or another. It responds to my call, jumps here and there, plays with weird stuff like ropes, paper, cricket balls, etc. It’s really an entertainment factory.
If you don’t have a pet, you can adopt one — cat, dog, hamster, or whatever you like to spend time with. It will make you laugh and fill your days with joy and happiness.
Read a funny book or watch funny video clips
You may read a few pages of any funny book or jokes collection. A good joke can help you improve your mood. It can give you a dose of laughter that ultimately increases your productivity.
If you don’t like reading funny things, you can watch funny video clips on YouTube instead. I enjoy watching funny clips of different comedy movies I watched before. You can give it a try to entertain yourself.
Follow your favorite comedians
Very recently, I have become a fan of two famous comedians, Trevor Noah and Kevin Hart. They both are incredible. Trevor Noah has also published an autobiography named ‘Born A Crime,’ an equally entertaining book and a must-read for all. I highly recommend it to you.
If you like stand-up comedy, you can watch one or two clips of your favorite comedians. If you do not like stand-ups, give it a try. Watching a few minutes of stand-up comedy can be a great source of laughter for your day-to-day life.
To Conclude
A daily dose of laughter not only makes your life more enjoyable but also helps you build resilience and enhance your relationships with others.
The world is already a tough place with all its intricacies. Don’t make it tougher with your gloomy face.
Upgrade your life with a little touch of humor and laughter and make your monotonous daily life more fun than before.
When you laugh, your mind, body, and spirit change.— Mark Twain
Thank you for reading.
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