Thursday, July 29, 2010

"...to the soul what rain is to the earth"

What can raise your spirits, lower your blood pressure, improve your health and increase your face value?  The answer - of course - the big "lol" or better yet, an even bigger "rofl!"

While it may sometimes be romantic to languish in a wistful melancholy, a cloak of gloom should not be regarded as a wardrobe mainstay - only the likes of Edgar Alan Poe have ever been able to tastefully carry off that "emo accessory."

Humour, and even more importantly, a humourous outlook has the power to change a life from "oh poor me" to "Oh! look at me!"

The Mayo Clinic  lists the many health benefits of laughter :

  • Stimulate many organs. Laughter enhances your intake of oxygen-rich air, stimulates your heart, lungs and muscles, and increases the endorphins that are released by your brain.
  • Activate and relieve your stress response. A rollicking laugh fires up and then cools down your stress response and increases your heart rate and blood pressure. The result? A good, relaxed feeling.
  • Soothe tension. Laughter can also stimulate circulation and aid muscle relaxation, both of which help reduce some of the physical symptoms of stress.
  • Improve your immune system. Negative thoughts manifest into chemical reactions that can impact your body by bringing more stress into your system and decreasing your immunity. In contrast, positive thoughts actually release neuropeptides that help fight stress and potentially more-serious illnesses.
  • Relieve pain. Laughter may ease pain by causing the body to produce its own natural painkillers. Laughter may also break the pain-spasm cycle common to some muscle disorders.
  • Increase personal satisfaction. Laughter can also make it easier to cope with difficult situations. It also helps you connect with other people. 
  • (Title from a quotation from Gerry Hopman - "Humor is to the soul what rain is to the earth.")

    For a light but thorough treatment of the elevating and infectious effects of humour, watch this YouTube video!!

    Posted via email from juddzz's posterous