Reader’s Digest
If you are old enough, you may remember Reader’s Digest. In fact, silly me, it’s still published today, but I remember the magazine as a kid way back in 70’s and 80’s er 60’s and 70’s. One of the sections I used to read (I didn’t understand the rest!) was “Laughter is a medicine” and that phrase has stuck with me for several decades now. Of course, I didn’t really understand what the phrase meant, I just thought it sounded good.
Now of course, you will find many websites and magazine writers (who are experts in health) tell you that indeed laughter is good for your health! Apparently, laughter is a pain killer, a relaxant, a stress reliever, releases endorphins which make you happy, boosts immunity, protects the heart, makes us more attractive(!) and much more. Got to be worth a try then! I personally like the ‘makes us more attractive’ benefit….
Self improvement and laughter
Setting aside the proclaimed health benefits for a moment, how does laughter (and smiling maybe) help ones ‘self’. How can it positively affect our self improvement? Apparently laughter relieves stress and I believe it! So less stress and more happiness equals self improvement.
What to do about stress
At times my job is stressful and I find myself getting a little morose, down or generally fed up with the way things are going. The answer I think is to have a jolly good belly laugh! Watch a comedian like Stewart Francis on Youtube or go to see a live comedian near you. Maybe just deliberately joke about with a friend? In fact, why not laugh out loud for no reason at all?
Go on, be daft and (try not to feel embarrassed) laugh out loud right now!