By Reina Hasting
With the first day of April being April Fools’ Day, it is no surprise that April is National Humor Month. What a great opportunity to raise public awareness of the therapeutic value of humor.
Anyone who knows me knows I love to smile and laugh. One thing I’ve learned over the years is that what may be funny to me might not be funny to somebody else. Comedy is subjective, so it’s good to think twice before sharing a story or joke. Although I’ve had some awkward moments with some of my jokes, I still laugh and sometimes my laugh alone will get us all laughing in my house to the point of giving our abs a workout. It’s the best feeling.
There are some great reasons to include laughter in your daily life. According to Mayo Clinic, laughter is a great form of stress relief with many short-term to long-term effects.
• Some short-term effects from laughter. Laughter stimulates 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. It activates and relieves your stress response. A rollicking laugh fires up and then cools down your stress response, and it can increase and then decrease your heart rate and blood pressure. The result? A good, relaxed feeling.
Laughter soothes tension. Laughter can also stimulate circulation and aid muscle relaxation, both of which can help reduce some of the physical symptoms of stress.
• Some long-term effects from laughter. It can improve your immune system. Negative thoughts manifest into chemical reactions that can affect your body by bringing more stress into your system and decreasing your immunity. By contrast, positive thoughts can actually release neuropeptides that help fight stress and potentially more serious illnesses.
• Relieves pain. Laughter may ease pain by causing the body to produce its own natural painkillers.
• Laughter can increase personal satisfaction. Laughter can also make it easier to cope with difficult situations. It also helps you connect with other people.
• Improves your mood. Many people experience depression, sometimes due to chronic illnesses. Laughter can help lessen your stress, depression and anxiety and may make you feel happier. It also can improve your self-esteem.
Laughter does the mind and body good, so feel free to have laughter in your days. It can end up being the best medicine sometimes and that’s no joke. Here are some tips for bringing more laughter into your life from the University of Connecticut.
• Spend time with funny people. Surround yourself with people who laugh easily and can make you laugh.
• Listen to (or watch) clips of people laughing — it’s contagious!
• Find the funny in everyday occurrences. Everything in life can be drama or comedy — it is up to you to decide which. For example, if you spill your coffee, say something like “The coffee is on me today!” and laugh about it.
• Follow your favorite funny people on social media. Often, social media is linked to negativity, but you can control what you look at. By following and liking more pages that make you smile and laugh, humor will show up more often in your feeds.
• Schedule a “fun break” on your calendar. It is far too easy to get wrapped up in the day’s work — remember to take time to laugh by scheduling five minutes on your calendar to look at funny videos or read a joke book. You will be recharged and ready to take on the rest of your tasks with a new energy.
• Start a humor journal. Write down three things each day that you found amusing. Any time you are feeling down and need a smile, look back on your humor journal.
• Watch a comedy show. Whether in person or digitally, a comedy routine is a sure-fire way to have a few laughs!
• Play games: Get some family or friends together (in person or virtually) to play a fun game.
• Watch a funny movie: Pick a favorite or get recommendations from friends and then settle in for some laughs.
• Strike up a conversation. Instead of talking about the weather, ask somebody what was the last thing that made them laugh.
• Challenge a friend or family member to lip sync with you. Find a song and lip sync together or against each other — the more into it you each get, the funnier it becomes! Check out some of Jimmy Fallon’s lip sync battles or the Lip Sync Battle YouTube channel for some hilarious inspiration.
• Imitate a funny clip from a show or comedy routine. Repeat a funny conversation from a TV show or comedy routine trying to imitate accents and voices — do this with a friend or family member for even more laughs.
• Dance. Learn a new dance or challenge some friends to a dance-off!
For more tips go to bit.ly/3unBLkR.
Reina Hasting is a coordinator with Extension’s Family Nutrition Program, which is administered by the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. For questions, she can be contacted at rhhasting@alaska.edu or 907-474-2437.
