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Essays about the positive effects of laughter on emotional and physical health
Essay on Health benefits of humor and laughter
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An average adult tends to laugh fifteen times per day approximately; in contrast, an average child laughs three hundred to five hundred a day (Sherman, 2014). Ignoring the significant benefits that laughter causes in our lives, we dismiss the times we laugh. Those benefits have been studied since 1979 when Norman Causin, a pioneer in this field, wrote ‘‘Anatomy of an Illness’’ a book where he narrates his experience about how he used humor (laughter) and a positive attitude to relieve his own pain from his medical condition. He expressed, ‘‘I was greatly elated by the discovery that there is a physiologic basis for the ancient theory that laughter is good medicine’’ (Causin, 1979, p. 44). Causin’s theories just were the starting point of intensive …show more content…
However, many successful leaders such as Barack Obama, president of the United States, and celebrities like Oprah Winfrey and Will Smith point that by using laughter in their daily life they have reached their personal goal since it is considered a social skill through which we can be happy and spread happiness. While she was explaining what she thinks success is, Oprah Winfrey said, ‘‘Every day brings a chance to live free of regret and with as much joy, fun, and laughter as you can stand.’’(--) If you know how to laugh correctly, you can make people think you are trustworthy and you look more attractive as well. Competence and attractiveness are two aspects leads by laughter and humor as well as increasing togetherness and pleasing social contact which reduce conflictive relationships. This means that laughter will improve our social support.(--) it leads to widen our social circles which is a necessary skill to succeed. In this regard, laughter is not only a behavioral expression (see introduction) or a way to life, but also a social competence which contains interpersonal aspects. (--) No doubts that laugh is the key to
Although modern science has allowed us to develop many complex medicines, laughter is still the strongest one available in the real world and in the book. Laughter proves to be a strong medicine in more ways than one and is completely free, allowing anyone to use it at anytime. It allows us to connect socially with people, it can be used as a way of overthrowing power, and it is good for your health. As Randle McMurphy showed in the novel, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, laughter can lighten the mood in the darkest situations.
Laughing is resorted to in times where we need to laugh. It’s an escape from reality, its comfort, its fear. Laughing subdues any emotion that is too high strung in our system. It lets it vapor out in a melancholy form that helps us cope with problems that no one else can really understand and help us with. In One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest it allowed emotional tension escape from the patients and made nurse Ratched lose her ward.
As the story continues and McMurphy’s influence over the patients strengthens, the reader sees other occasions where the laughter is healing. With McMurphy’s big, boisterous laugh dominating the ward, the patients begin to laugh themselves. Their laughs sound awkward at first- forced, simulated- but nevertheless they are laughing and whether the patients, or Bromden realize it, this phony laugh does begin to heal them.
3. Apte, Mahadev L. Humor and Laughter: An Anthropological Approach. Ithaca, NY: Cornell UP, 1985.
The spectrum of therapeutic techniques available within the health care continuum is very complex and varied. From traditional medicine, to holistic remedies, and anything in between, nurses have a rather large arsenal at their disposal when it comes to treating the patients that are under their care. Humor as an alternative therapy has long been understood as a proven means to aid in the recovery process. “With so much power to heal and renew, the ability to laugh easily and frequently is a tremendous resource for surmounting problems, enhancing your relationships, and supporting both physical and emotional health” (Smith & Segal, 2015). The purpose of this paper is to discuss situations in which humor would be a viable alternative therapy
When one laughs, a public expression of feelings is being made. One’s guard is let down, and the act of laughing and the emotion that catalyzed it often appears to leave the immediate control of the laugher. Ironically, the more inappropriate the situation, the more full bodied and unstoppable one’s laughter can become. Both Minnie of “Dry September” and Nancy of “That Evening Sun” laugh at seemingly ill-timed occasions.
“Comic laughter comes out of our awareness of the act of living, an awareness that is distinctly human” (Longman 9). Comedy has been and will be a major part of our society in terms of entertainment, conversation and in many other aspects of our lives. It is something that is inevitable and allows us as humans to communicate. The journey that comedy has made throughout the years has not been an easy one, especially for women. You think about comedic characters in movies, plays and television today and immediately there are many women who come to mind.
Depression is a serious mental illness that has many routes to treatment. Some of these include counseling, prescription medication, exercise, and proper sleeping and eating habits. Along with the use of any of those treatment methods, laughter can help lighten the mood of the person experiencing depression. Often, people who have been diagnosed with depression say that they experienced an unnaturally low mood and lost interest in things that used to bring joy and pleas...
Never forget to laugh. "If you can laugh at it, you can survive it" (Cosby). Life is difficult for everyone. It is how people deal with these strives and struggle is what matters. Sometimes, the best way to get a break from the hardships of life is to simply laugh with friends and family. It’s a Balance process. Some people can be caught up in life’s problems and forget to laugh. Laughter is the mental medicine for life. Laughter supports the health of the body. Laughter can break up the quietness in a room. Laughter can change the room from black and white to a rainbow of colors. Laughter is a result of looking at something in a positive light. Is the glass half empty or half full? Whatever the circumstance, never underestimate the power of a good giggle. Never forget to laugh.
Laughter can also, “increase the production of pain-killing endorphins, decreases the production of stress-related hormones, and enhances immunity”
To assess the benefits that laughter brings to the body, Berk did an experiment that allowed 14 volunteers to watch the 20-minute comedy. He at the same time checked the blood pressure and cholesterol levels before and after the movie in them. The results showed that: after the "advocacy laugh," blood pressure and cholesterol in those people have fallen. Later, he added a reverse experiment, when they see the sad movie, the result was completely unable to achieve on. This suggests that seemingly simple laughter helps you improve everyday health issues that you may not
Amber YANG-Eng 101-024-Paper #2-February 3, 2015 2 Smile just for a day How does laughter change the value of life? Many people today are having issues with their mental state. There are more depressed people than the happy people because they are struggling with their life. But there are many ways to prevent it. Research shows how laughter is the best medicine because it can brighten people’s mood, regulate health, and help one individual to gain hope for their future.
If there is one way to bring a smile to someone’s face, it is laughter. Funny jokes, comical stunts, sarcasm- Every person is different when it comes to what makes them laugh. Some find dry humor comical. Others think sarcasm or joke-filled ranting are the best. ‘Comedy’ is such a broad term, broad enough to allow everyone to find something they find comical. In fact, ‘comedy’ includes a specific type of drama, one where the protagonist is joyful and happy endings are expected. Comedy is like a drug; it allows you to escape reality. When we say the word ‘comedy’ in the present, we are generally referring to a type of performance which provides humor. However, in its broadest sense, comedy has only one purpose: comedy makes people smile and
Those who use humor to its best advantage teach others by example. Instead of getting angry when something goes wrong, we should try to look for the humor in the situation. It eases tensions and keeps things in perspective. Humor can energize us when a task has become tedious. Humor can make even the worst of situations tolerable.
Smiles are contagious, when someone smiles it creates a chain reaction and then others begin to smile or laugh and this makes people happy even for just a second. I continued to surround myself with kind and happy people that carried out caring actions and simply smiled.