There is a lot of truth in the saying “laughter is the best medicine.”
Babies and children laugh numerous times a day, often at the simplest things. Regrettably as we grow into adulthood, we take ourselves more seriously and don’t laugh as often.
I enjoy laughter and laugh easily and often, frequently at myself. This is a huge benefit as I have many occasions where the cause of the laughter was me. I can see the funny side too.
Laughter makes us feel good, it is a stress reliever and releases endorphins, the body’s natural chemical increasing dopamine and serotonin activity.
Some stories can continue to make us laugh just by recalling them.
One of my favourites was regarding my grandson Turner, then one year old. At the time he did not find this story funny at all, but when told recently he thoroughly enjoyed the retelling and just imaging the scenario made him howl with laughter.
It was his first full weekend without his parents. My sister-in-law Caroline and I had spent a happy day on their farm, visiting the cows, playing in the puddles, climbing trees and now it was bath-time for muddy Turner.
He normally loved his baths. The tub at their farmhouse was very deep and to our surprise once immersed, he began to cry loudly. We could not distract him. Thinking he might be frightened I stripped down and jumped in with him. He looked a bit taken aback and continued to cry.
Playing with the rubber ducks and boats floating about, I did my best but to no avail. Caroline tried another tactic. She grabbed the shower cap depicting a cow, covered in a black and white pattern, she donned the cap and began crawling across the floor mooing, which caused Turner to cry even harder.
Amy, my young niece, hearing all the noise and commotion, suddenly opened the door and was confronted with this sight: a naked grandma playing with rubber ducks, an aunt in a cow shower cap mooing as she crawled across the floor, and a baby crying loudly.
Amy looked aghast “What on earth is going on,” she stated, “look at you two, what are you playing at? No wonder he is crying.”
To this day we can all laugh at the memory.
A lot of research has been done about the power of laughter. It is a stress reliever, can reduce anger, and lift depression. Laughter can be contagious, if you have ever watched a video clip of babies laughing you probably join in.
Studies in Norway and Japan have shown that laughter and plenty of it can extend your life by as much as eight years.
After a good laugh most of us feel better. Sometimes, if I feel a bit down, I read lists of autocorrect messages and texts which can be hilarious.
My husband loves to laugh too and often we share the items that we find fun.
So, boost your energy level with laughter as you cope with winter weather, and general stress as you prepare for the holidays. Seeing the humour of difficult situations always eases them.
