We all know the importance of exercise to get our circulation going, strengthen our muscles and keep us mentally sharp, but what about the internal aerobics we should be doing, called laughter?

Laughing exercises all sorts of internal muscles and organs that nothing else reaches in quite the same way. The saying that "A merry heart doeth good like a medicine" is actually very true. Laughing reduces stress and helps us to feel better, and the heartier the laughing the better. There are even clinics that specialise in laugh therapy - one was featured on the evening news just the other night. Although the people look a little ridiculous, the idea is a good one.

Although laughing when depressed is very difficult, it's not impossible. However, an external trigger is required, so it's a good idea to watch a comedy show, read jokes or something else funny to get you to break into a laugh. This won't, of course, immediately clear your depression, but it does give you a period during which you can "forget" all your problems, giving the mind a little time gap in which to gather strength and resources to fight the depression.

When stressed at work and faced with lots of challenges and obstacles, it often helps to look at the funny side of dire situations, and have a laugh about it. This aids in shifting your perspective to give you a wider understanding of the problem, as often people get "tunnel vision" when crowded by problems.

When looking for humor to cheer you up, it is best to stick to clean humor, as the other kind just tends to remind you of various problems. This type of clean humor can be quite hard to find, as comedians tend to go below the belt to try and get cheap laughs. But it is the clever joke that can really get you laughing from the belly. And it's even better if nobody "get's hurt" by the humor. Humor doesn't have to be cruel to be funny. It's a lot harder to make up these jokes, and they are therefore harder to find, but they're out there.

If you can't find any jokes, go to the mirror and try to look as serious as you can. The look on your own face is usually enough to get one laughing!

Another good idea is to hang around other people that laugh a lot. I used to have an uncle that loved to laugh, and it always cheered me up to be around him, and I actually felt better for being in his company.

So try and have a good laugh! Let it bubble up and wobble your whole inside around.

It's good for you!!

More humor and a free SQUEAKY CLEAN JOKES page at:

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