It's often hard to see the funny side of life when you're feeling depressed and in need of serious therapy. But that's exactly what some doctors and health professionals would like to encourage – laughter therapy.
The use of humour is now seriously being applied to help relieve stress, diminish pain and most importantly, to even play a role in improving the body's immune functions.
Katrina Robertson runs a psychology practice in Mackay, North Queensland. "I always keep an open mind when it comes to using new techniques and therapies," she explains. "I have participated in a group which used laughing therapy and I use humour and laughter as part of my general counselling and therapy when appropriate."
Laughter is often used intuitively in everyday life as a coping mechanism. Continuing research in the scientific and medical field is proving that laughter could become a highly viable complementary therapy when used in conjunction with conventional treatment.
Laughter stimulates and increases the release of endorphins, the body's "happy hormones". It also increases the amount of antibody-producing cells and enhances the effectiveness of T-cells in the body. This strengthens the immune system, making it stronger and also helps reduce the physical symptoms of stress.
According to Katrina: "Laughter is a great way of releasing tension and can easily shift focus and help move through some difficult issues, hence the saying: 'I laughed so much I cried.'
"Laughter of any sort is a great antidote to the media's obsession with tragedy and catastrophe…I think it would be great to create laughter booths everywhere – free of charge so you could go and get a laughter fix when life gets too serious!"
Laughter therapy can include group sessions focusing on getting the belly laughs flowing in an attempt to help people see the lighter side of life.
Anyone looking for some comic relief from the stress of modern society can come together for a session of pure laughing. The sessions often begin with a core person initiating a certain type of laugh, for example, "hearty vigorous laughter" or the "etiquette office laughter", and the group will respond with their own version. The simulated laughter will create momentum for real laughter and so the therapy is under way.
Morning is a great time for a laughter group to practice, because it sets a jovial mood for the rest of the day. Some companies use laughter therapy as a team building activity.
One of the best things about laughter therapy is that it can be done anytime, anywhere and it doesn't have to break the bank. Check the Internet to find a local laughter therapy group near you.
If joining a laughter therapy group doesn't sound like your thing, but you could still use a good laugh, there are many ways to get the endorphins running. Renting a comedy DVD is a good start or getting together with a friend who you know cracks you up.
You could even try some "self laughing therapy" try out a few crazy laughs by yourself and see how quickly the momentum builds and the real chuckles start to flow. Before you know it, you'll be cracking yourself up and feeling much better too!
