Why Laughter is a Very Good (if not the best) Medicine!
Boosting our positive energy regularly not only can rebalance the brain chemistry positively, but makes it more likely that we will continue with whatever healthy goals we have set for ourselves…just one of the many benefits of regular laughter.
Philosopher John Morreall believes that the first human laughter may have begun as a gesture of shared relief at the passing of danger. This may go some way to explain why memes and jokes during the pandemic have been a collective means of alleviating the feelings of stress we might otherwise feel. The relaxation that results from a bout of laughter inhibits the biological fight-or-flight response – ie. The stress response. It can produce endorphins – our natural pain reliever, and lowers cortisol.
Laughter may indicate to our brains we trust in our companions. “You had to be there” is a common phrase when people laugh about a past event, and many researchers believe that the purpose of laughter is related to making and strengthening human connections – a shared joke often imprints in the memory, and the more it is recalled, the greater the bond between those involved, and as laughter is “contagious”– being in a group that laughs a lot can make you feel positive.
Humour is a way of coping with stress at work – research has found 911 callers loved their jobs because they coped through laughing with colleagues – which again reminds us of the communal aspect; and a lot of enjoyment can come out of what Goffman termed “team collusion” – when you’ve agreed to do something that others don’t know like “get the word “penguin” into an blog – oh wait…!
So if you want to just boost your sense of humour – start with the things that make you feel happy and build from there eg:
- Recognise when you are enjoying something and whether it energises you or relaxes you. If it energises you, engage in that type of pursuit more, or perhaps if it’s company, spend more time with those people.
- Recognise what makes you laugh – and even when you made others laugh but also be aware of what doesn’t make people laugh and avoid those areas anyway…there are many things to make a joke out of, you do not need to debase yourself.
- It’s worth remembering that research has shown certain words make us laugh – commonly:
- Those which have letters we use less eg: “k” so a word like “oink” may make us laugh more than “snort”.
- “taboo” words especially bodily functions, because a relief of embarrassment is laughter eg: “poo” “bum””willy” (I’m ashamed to say I’m giggling while writing that)…along with that, a certain shock factor can work – as a psychologist this really is the first time I’ve written “poo” “bum” “willy” (still laughing) in an “expert” piece.
…but then, one of my affirmations is to take my profession seriously, but not myself – and that works for me.
