If you are too busy to laugh, you are simply too busy.
"We don't laugh because we're happy – we're happy because we laugh." - William James
Old proverbs aside, it turns out that laughter really is the best medicine. Particularly when it's of the belly-laugh variety, the kind that produces brain waves akin to levels seen in people who reach "a true state of meditation."
New studies show that making a concerted effort to make laughter a part of your daily routine is an easy and medicine-free method for reducing the stress hormone cortisol, boosting brain health and keeping mental levels sharp. All that and laughter can support the immune system, improve blood pressure, stimulate the organs and reduce pain too!
When there is mirthful laughter, the brain and body get a workout. You not only feel better, you also think more clearly and have more integrative thoughts. What's not to like about that? Laughter helps you reframe, revisit, reorganize, or rearrange aspects of your life - making you feel SPARKLY all over!
Meditation Musing:
"At the height of laughter, the universe is flung into a kaleidoscope of new possibilities."
- Jean Houston
Get ready. Get set. It's time to LAUGH...
Challenge of the Day:
"A laughing meditation?" you ask. "You must be kidding?!!"
NO, I'm very serious!
So, you've got nothing to laugh about?
Great! Then this laughing meditation is just for you.
Gather up some weird friends to join you.
You say you don't have any?
Then run - don't walk - and find one or two or three.
Weird friends are the spice of life!
Set a timer for 15 minutes and lie down on the floor and just start laughing. Fake it 'til you make it! Before you know it, you will all look so ridiculous that the laughter will be genuine. You'll be laughing at them - and you can rest assured that they will certainly be laughing at you!
When the timer goes off sit or lie absolutely still in silence.
Experience the wonderful emptiness you have created inside yourself through the release of all the tension and stress. This is what the mystics call Samadhi - a glimpse of the beyond.
Happy Laughing!
Beth