Some people will admit to owning false teeth; others will casually confess they do not wash thoroughly behind their ears. Some people are happy to broadcast their latest implant, lift or tuck; others are quite prepared to divulge they are penniless, poor and bankrupt. Some people tell of ghastly addictions to garlic, chocolate or pasta; others will openly say - in either pounds, ounces or kilograms - exactly how much they weigh. We will all of us admit to many things, but, nowhere, ever, at any time, have I ever heard anyone admit to not having a sense of humour.
Humour is a core condition of humanness. Laughter, smiles and a happy sense of humour are our passports of entry into the human race. We each of us grow, develop and unfold through laughter, happiness and humour. The greatest wisdom schools in the world have advocated a balance of both seriousness and joy. Laughter can also be a medicine - a medicine with tangible, physical benefits as well as therapeutic emotional, mental and spiritual benefits.
"Laughter Medicine" is an umbrella term I use for exploring some of the most fundamental issues of health, happiness and wholeness, such as, the language of laughter, the art of joyful living, the therapeutic power of play, the human need to celebrate life, the pursuit of personal happiness, re-creation, and, the quest for our inner fun child.
There is now a wealth of orthodox medical research from around the world which supports the idea that, humour heals! In particular, the exciting research of Psychoneuroimmunology proves conclusively that a happy, joyful approach to life can inspire energy, vitality and health - on every level. This view is also supported by some of the more creative and imaginative schools of counselling and psychotherapy, such as, Rational-Emotive Therapy, Transactional Analysis and Existentialism.
Laughter and Relaxation
Have you ever asked yourself why you laugh the way you do or why you smile the way you do? Generally speaking, laughter has a two-step action on the physical body: step one, it stimulates step two, it relaxes. During laughter, the body is stimulated and exercised; after laughter, the body relaxes and calms itself. Laughter is often, therefore, a most effective method for inducing physical and mental relaxation - laughter is a medicinal relaxant.
The relaxing effects of laughter, as discovered by medical research, include, lowering muscle tension, relaxed sympathetic nervous system, better circulation and a full, deep and healthy respiration pattern. In particular, humour, merriment and mirth are acknowledged as devices for discharging surplus nervous energy. According to modern research, laughter serves as a form of "safety-valve" for the body's energies.
Laughter is often a social signal for calm, for relaxation and for confidence. There is an old English proverb that says, "Laugh to let go" - laughter really can help us to let go of the physical, emotional and mental tensions. Indeed, the therapeutic benefits of one minute of genuine laughter is thought to be equivalent to approximately forty-five minutes of deep relaxation, according to one piece of recent research. For this reason, laughter is sometimes described as a form of internal massage.
Pain: "Laugh it off"!
Although laughter has been advocated as the best medicine since time immemorial, it was not until the late 1970's that the medical profession began to take laughter seriously. In particular, it was the experience of one man, Norman Cousins, that really underlined the potential medicinal powers of mirth. In 1978, the New England Journal of Medicine published an article by Norman Cousins which outlined his recovery from a painful, crippling disorder known as ankylosing spondylitis - his chief medicine was regular prescriptions of Candid Camera episodes and Marx Brother movies.
In his book, Anatomy of an Illness, Norman Cousins "made the joyous discovery that ten minutes of genuine belly laughter had an anaesthetic effect that would give me at least two-hours of pain-free sleep." Norman Cousins found that laughter could help to relieve pain - probably because of its ability to relax muscles and nerves. Norman Cousins is now a professor of medicine. He has actively helped to pioneer much of the research of Psychneuroimmunology - one of the major findings of which is that laughter and happy, positive attitudes can effect a release of endorphin chemicals into the body - endorphins are our body's natural pain-killers.
Smile away your Stress
It was Herman Melville, author of Moby ****, who wrote, "A laugh's the wisest, easiest answer to all that's queer." One of the inspirations for starting The Laughter Clinic was the number of people attending my NHS Stress Buster Clinics who would testify, "the turning point came when I started to laugh". It is so often true that during times of stress, laughter, smiles and humour can offer light relief and personal release.
Psychologists have posited over eighty different theories as to why we laugh. One major theory states that laughter has a profound effect on personal perception - we change the way we look at the world, when we laugh. Therefore, one reason why we laugh is to change perceptions, alter perspective and create a new view. This is so important for successful stress control because, as the old saying goes, "People are disturbed not by things, but by the view they take of them," Epictetus, 1st century, A.D.
Laughter is such a capable healer when it comes to stress - laughter can fizzle fear; laughter can help us to see the folly of our anxieties; laughter is often a wonderful release during times of mental tension; we laugh to increase our tolerance and understanding. Another major theory of laughter suggests that laughter is an act of liberation and self-superiority: as a medieval poet once penned, "laughter takes us up, way up high; from a dark bottomless pit, to the fresh, clear blue sky".
Fun for Fatigue
Mind, body and soul light up like a bright neon light whenever we laugh. Laughter, humour, happiness and play can all create chemical changes in the body so as to effect energy, vitality and strength - when we are laughing we are truly alive. We each of us have an abundant store of energy which we are occasionally denied, not because of a poor diet of food or drink or breath, but because of a poor diet of attitude, thought and belief.
Energy is first and foremost a product of mind; not of body. Laughter tends to inspire enthusiasm, fresh resolve, positive outlook and the ability to start over again. Laughter is a form of zest, and as the philosopher, Bertrand Russell, once wrote, "What hunger is in relation to food, zest is in relation to life". Laughter, happiness and joy fire the "energiser hormones", noradrenalin and cortisol, through the body, and in so doing, laughter helps us to embrace life with all of the intensity, application and enthusiasm we require.
Conclusions
For so long, the medical profession has tended to dismiss laughter as being something that merely makes people feel good. The whole point is, however, that "merely" making people feel good is an essential requirement of health, happiness and wholeness - when we well, we tend to be well. This is increasingly apparent with the advent of modern mind/body research, psychosomatic medicine and psychoneuroimmunology research.
Laughter is a medicine - it has tangible, physical effects as well as subtle, therapeutic emotional, mental and spiritual effects. The recent upsurge of medical research into mirth, merriment and laughter supports an holistic model for health that considers health to be supported and enhanced by a person's sense of happiness and wholeness. Learning to allow yourself to laugh, to smile, to play, to be joyful and to be happy are essential talents and skills that can create a more permanent foundation for well-being. Humour heals
