Motivation Tips
Is laughter really the best medicine? My youngest son was a year old and just beginning to talk when I walked into our kitchen one day to find him sitting in a huge puddle of ketchup. He had emptied an extra large plastic squeeze bottle of ketchup out onto the floor. I was just about to 'blow my top' when he looked up at me with his big brown eyes, smiled sweetly and caroled in his cute little voice, "Fries please!" My anger dissipated immediately and I burst out laughing. It wasn't long before my son was laughing right along with me.
Robert Provine, a behavioral neurobiologist at the University of Maryland says laughter is the perfect way to deflect anger. If other people in a tense situation join in, the risk of confrontation will almost certainly dissipate. My husband is a master of this technique. He often uses his dry humor to ease the tension between us when we've had an argument. I tend to stay angry much longer than he does. He has the knack of knowing exactly what to say so I will be forced to laugh and crack my icy demeanor.
Children laugh four hundred times a day. Adults laugh fifteen times a day. That's just one of the interesting facts I discovered while doing a little research on the important role of laughter. I attended a workshop where a stand up comedian talked to teachers about the value of humor both in the classroom and in life. I had seen the movie Patch Adams in which a doctor played by actor Robin Williams uses humor as a tool to heal his patients. I was surprised to find how many physicians and psychologists support the theory the film advances.
There are apparently numerous studies which have proven people who laugh more frequently have stronger immune systems, lower blood pressure, more cardiovascular flexibility and more well developed abdominal muscles. Psychologists are finding the use of humor promotes healing in their patients. Apparently people who laugh have more hope, more energy, more creativity and a deeper connection with other human beings.
I am fortunate to have good genes when it comes to humor. My grandmothers both knew the value of a good laugh. My father's mother had a witty one-liner for almost any situation. At my grandmother's funeral one of my cousins said, "When I think of grandma an image comes to mind of her whole body just shaking with laughter, her eyes brimming with tears and her teeth on the verge of falling out. She is laughing at a funny comment, probably one she made herself. "
My mother's mother loved to laugh as well. I can remember times when she and her daughters would start telling funny stories and get so carried away they simply couldn't stop laughing. They would be holding their sides, tears streaming down their faces as they recalled some humorous incident from their family's past.
Apparently we think 40,000 thoughts a day and 80% of them are negative. No wonder Maya Angelou the American poet once said that a sense of humor is the most valuable personal resource we have. Victor Frankel taught his fellow concentration camp residents jokes during World War II. He was convinced a sense of humor was vital to their will and spirit to survive.
Laughter can help resolve conflict, improve physical health and foster a positive mental state. It really is the best medicine.
