Feeling down in the dumps? Maybe you just need a good laugh.
“Even if you fake the laughter, I know it sounds really strange, right? But when you fake it, you get the same benefits,” D.C.-area motivational speaker and happiness coach Nira Berry said. “Of course, if you can find real laughter, I always recommend that.”
Laughter is a form of deep breathing exercise that can improve blood flow, according to research conducted at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore.
“It brings more oxygen into your brain, helps you focus better, helps your memory and it just really oxygenates your whole body; it’s great for every organ,” Berry said, while adding that there are many benefits to finding your funny bone.
“From reducing your stress cortisol levels and boosting your endorphins, your happy hormones and — nowadays it’s so important to boost your immune system,” she said.
The Mayo Clinic cites numbers of similar examples of short term benefits and positive long term effects of laughter.
Want to feel happier? Berry believes that’s up to you.
“Abraham Lincoln once said that people are only about as happy as they allow themselves to be,” she said.
To improve your state of mind and quality of life Berry said you might just need to change your perspective and how you view the world.
“Maybe you stubbed your toe. Instead of being upset about it, you could just say, ‘Ha, ha, ha — just laugh a little bit’ and go, ‘Of course I’m going to do that! Hahahahhaaa ha ha.'”
If raucous, out-loud belly laughs would be too disruptive to people around you, a simple smile might do to improve your mood.
“It’s amazing how our bodies work. When you smile, the tiny little tendons in your lips send signals to your brain that something is going on that’s happy,” Berry said. “So, if you do nothing else but smile, you start changing the chemical make up in your blood and you start feeling happier.”
