Energy Medicine - Part 4

This is the last few days of the 7 day challenge.
K Fields of Articulates shares her experience below

"I have done quite wonderfully at it. I have kept my cool under the most extreme circumstances of when my mother who is undergoing some medical treatments was experiencing serious problems and when I first asked the MD assistant, about it I got a shoulder shrug... instead of getting upset, I took a deep breath, smiled and asked as nicely as I could if there was something I could do to help reliever her of the pain she was in... For some reason this seemed to sink into the MD that this was a serious problem and he became instantly helpful, and my mom is doing better now.. Thank-you! "
http://www.arcticulates.org/arcticulates.html

Please send in your comments!
Agapelife / P Nicholas

Laughter Therapy 3

"This person arrived at the laughter club. She did not make eye-contact, looked downcast,anxious with her head looking down. A few minutes into the laughter session, she started to make eye contact, cautiously smile, then laughed. At the end of the session, she told the class, she had lung cancer and forced herself to come to the laughter class in an attempt to elevate her mood and now she felt relaxed and even joyful." ( quote from Sophie, leader of Laughter club)

The above was from an interview with Sophie T, leader of the Sunflower Laughter Club in Ottawa. Another story that Sophie shared was about a person who had not smiled for 2 years and was suicidal. After a visit to the laughter club, he laughed which gave him hope to continue his treatment.

These are not isolated incidents. There are other testimonies that you will find on Sophie's website as well as the website of Laughter Club International. Please see the links given at the end of this article. So who attends the laughter clubs? According to Sophie, they are divided into two groups 1. Those who want to prevent stress related diseases 2. Those who have heard about the benefits of laughter and curious to see if it works for them!

Research studies both done in 2007, one in India and the other in the USA both show that laughter decreased blood pressure and all the other benefits mentioned in Laughter Therapy - 2. The link below will show some amazing testimonials of people who gave laughter a chance to work on them. You will also read details of the studies done in 2007.

In Dr. Kateria's words, an " happiness cocktail" is produced in the body during laughter and you can have as much of this cocktail without a hangover effect the next morning. So what are you waiting for??? Make yourself the happiness cocktail!

My appreciation to Sophie Terrase and Dr Kateria's website as well as my friends at the laughter club!

http://www.laughteryoga.org/
Agapelife/P.Nicholas

Laughter Therapy 2

" Laughter Clubs - silly" " Laughter - scary" These are two of the comments I received from a blogger forum. Why is it that people are not scared to show anger, hate or sorrow but when it comes to laughter, it scares them, or when seeing a group of people laughing, it seems silly??

Silly or not, this article will demonstrate the benefits of daily laughter to your physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health. This is especially important in this time of recession and cutbacks of every kind, no one can take laughter away from you except yourself. Here's a video from Oprah - sending her hairdresser to check out a laughter club.



Dr. M. Kateria stated that laughing releases certain hormones and neuropeptides which he calls the happiness cocktail into our bodies. This happy cocktail reduces 1.stress, 2.pain,3. boost our immune system and 4.improves circulation, which all improves your Energy. Laughing also increases the levels of immunoglobin A(1gA) which fights against viral infections like cough and colds. Laughter has shown to decrease high blood pressure, arthritis. It also works for diabetes and cancers.
A few minutes of hearty laughter is equivalent to 10 minutes of jogging.

Your body and mind absorbs laughter to produce and/or maintain overall health. You will not starve your body from food or drink, even for a day, so why should you, starve it from laughter?? What do you think? Send me your comments.

Agapelife/P.Nicholas

Laughter Therapy 1

My name is Sophie.... HaHaHaHeeHeee, she continues laughing for a half a minute, then she looks at B who states her name, starts to laugh, and Sophie laughs with her and so does everyone else.
This how we introduce ourselves in the Laughter yoga club.

Sophie is the leader of this club. Earlier, before we started, she told us the history of laughter clubs and its founder Dr Kateria who began laughter clubs a decade ago. Sylvie was taught by Dr. Kateria. She then gave us some brief instructions and told us not to be concerned if at first, we seem to be faking the laugh. She also told us that we would not speak during the session, we would be communicating with eye contact and basically follow her actions. She emphasized that we must laugh with the other and not laugh at the other.

It was my second visit to this laughter club which was named Sunflower Club. Sophie had an assortment of bright funny looking headbands and hats, that we could put on by choice. There were about 15 of us and for some it was a first time visit.

For about 40 minutes, the leader did some actions,with laughter and we followed. Each laughing action which lasted about 5 minutes was followed by deep breathing or yogic breathing. Since we were in the couple of weeks of the New Year, many of the laughing actions revolved around celebrating the New Year, like dancing and toasting to the New Year. Ten minutes into the laughter exercises, I noticed that many were already getting belly laughs. People who looked anxious and reticent about smiling at the beginning of the session, were now looking relaxed, happy and smiling at one another. Did I mention that the majority of the group did not know each other before the laughter session.

The last part of the laughter session,included a group exercise, transmitting our laughter to anyone we knew who most needed it. Then we had a quiet few minutes of relaxation to music, then, sharing our experience verbally, about what we felt or received from the session - the only time we talked. Everyone was smiling and everyone stated how relaxed and happy they felt.

Have you been to a laughter club? Would you like to be in one? If you have any questions, please send them via the comments. Next week, we will continue with this theme.

Humor - Gilda and Gene

One of the funniest couple.

Laughter's Capsule

What a fantastically Happy, two weeks. The joy of researching and writing about laughter - words are just so inadequate to describe it.
If, you my readers have come up with any words, that can truly describe, pure unadulterated joy or happiness, then let me know.

We had looked at the Gelotology - which is the study of laughter on our physiology. Hospitals and other health facilities have included laughter therapy as various researches had shown the positive effect of laughter on our physical body. Laughter enhances the immune system, the respiratory system, lowers blood pressure and relieves pain.

We also discovered how laughter was good for our mental and emotional well-being. Laughter connects people of different languages and cultures and religions, breaking down barriers, bridging the gaps. It is a universal language. Dr. Katari founder of the Laughter Yoga club which now has 6000 clubs world wide, feels that laughter is capable of bringing peace to the world.

Laughter specialist,Alice Hortop whose research and practice in Laughter therapy, showed how to bring laughter into our lives and the necessity of laughter in social life as well as in relationships

Then, we spoke of the types of laughter and how to practise them. Spiritual benefits of laughter was discussed for those of different religions or for those who had none.
There are still ongoing research in laughter.

I would like to continue on this theme but it will have to be interactive. Please send me your happiest moments, events or situations, which gave you belly laughs or the memories of those events that perpetuate those belly laughs. Also include people who made you laugh. EMPOWER your Life with LAUGHTER!
Laughing with you
Agapelife

Do you know the types of laughter

I am sure there are more types of laughter than the ones I will describe in this post.

Etiquette laughter This starts with a smile.It can be quite restrained and easily managed.

Pigeon laughter - Requires you to take a deep inhalation with the mouth shut and produce laughing sounds like the hum of a pigeon.

Soundless laughter. Inhale gently through the nose with mouth closed. Then open mouth and put tongue out and let the laugh out without making a sound while exhaling as long as possible. You should feel your stomach and upper abdomen muscles moving. The exhaling part while laughing makes a rhythmic movement of the diaphragm which is called " inner jogging"

Belly laughter This is the same procedure as soundless laughter except when you open your mouth, you let go and laugh loudly. With this laughter, you could roll on the floor or double up.

Practise these types of laughter daily. It will make such a difference to the outcome of your day. If you have any questions, please ask them by clicking on comment. Other comments welcome. If you are doing the laughter exercises, how often do you do them and how has it changed your outlook. Would like to hear from you!!
Agapelife


Ref:- R. Belasekar

Spiritual Aspect of Laughter

How is laughter spiritual, you may ask?

For those who believe they were created by God, it would not be difficult to see God's Hand in this, as one of the first spontaneous emotions displayed by a baby is laughter. No one taught the baby to smile or laugh. Have you observed a baby laughing while alone in the crib without any prompting??

Religion on Laughter and Humor
Buddhists

When Buddha was enlightened, the first thing He did was Smile. You may have also seen statues of the Laughing Buddha.
Islam

Qur'an or Koran
"They deserve paradise who make their companions laugh".
Judaism
The Old Testament has 57 references to laughter and 27 to humor.
Many incidents in the Old Testament filled with puns, dry humor, funny situations and funny word play.

Christians
The New Testament has 287 references to joy, delight, gladness, laughter and rejoicing.
Hinduism
The Laughter Yoga originated in Mumbai, India.

In his book, Bonham,states that Humor brings God closer to humanity. Laughter is a common link between various religions.

Humor bring God closer to Humanity. For those who do not have any religious belief, still are spiritual beings so the posting tomorrow will discuss how laughter affects your spiritual self.
Enjoy Bill Cosby on Noah's ArK
Agapelife
Bonham,Tal D. Humor: God's Gift, 1988

Easy Ways to Bring Laughter into Your Life

I have researched and taught all aspects of Laughter Therapy for the last 9 & 1/2 years and have been completely inspired by its power to lift mood, reduce pain, connect people, boost motivation and confidence and much, much more.

I think often people make the laughter and smiling search more complicated than its needs to be. I do look at humour types and analyse occupations to try and optimize opportunities for laughter... but I also think finding laughter should simply be put on to your daily agenda like eating fruit and veg.

Make a conscious decision to try and find your day fun, spend twenty minutes (plus if you can) actively looking for the funny in situations or around you, see someone who is light and smiley, do an activity that may bring in laughs (see a comedy, join a new gym class, people watch etc).

People often get distracted by the type of laughter they want, most people want rip roaring belly laughs.. they often come later after you start to enjoy life, laugh more and change your daily perspective.

Think back to the past, what made you laugh? What did you do as a child, teenager,in your twenties, thirties etc that made you laugh? Who makes you laugh? Can you find more people with the same attitude, could you see this person more or when you need their lightness to balance your day with humour?

Ask yourself questions, what stops you laughing? Who don't you laugh with? When don't you laugh? Then be pro-active... if you don't laugh with someone can you change How, When and Where you see them? Maybe meet them out for coffee as opposed to going to their house or invite them to a stand up comedy night. Give opportunities for relationships to change and develop.

Focus on finding fun, happiness and laughter in all you do. Try not to think I am not laughing whilst I do whatever it is you're doing... think instead what can I do to get laughter now or next time.
Alice Hortop
Senior Lecturer in Occupational Therapy In University of West England (UWE)
Laughter Therapy Specialist

Belly :Laughs

Did this cause you to laugh? Why? Comments appreciated! 20minutes of belly laughs equivalent to rowing for 1/2 hour according to recent research.

Laughter's impact on your social life

So how can laughter affect your social life?

Laughter is a universal language. It is contagious. It breaks down barriers. It is a natural diversion.

Laughter therapy has proved successful in relationship repairs for couples. How many times have you heard a woman saying of her partner, "I love his sense of humor", or a man stating that he fell in love with his wife's sense of humor. It has been used in psycho-therapy. It brings people together.

Please enjoy and send me comments on this video below by the founder of Laughter Clubs Dr. Kataria on world laughter day!
Agapelife

What does laughter do to your body?

So I hope you had at least about a dozen laughs yesterday. Today, we will see how those laughter affected your body.
Laughter does the following as research shows -
1. It lowers blood pressure.

2. It decreases the stress hormones.

3. It boosts the immune system by raising levels of infection-fighting cells.

4. It increases the proteins that fight diseases

5. It triggers the release of endorphins which are the body's natural pain-killers.
(Drs.Lee & Beck)
6.It empties the lungs more, resulting in a cleansing effect. Very beneficial for people with emphysema and other breathing or lung conditions.

7. As a cardiac exercise, a belly laugh is equivalent to jogging and as Norman Cousins stated it is internal jogging.

So laughter is an aerobic exercise.

On Monday, we will have a guest blogger - Laughter Specialist, occupational therapist from UK, who has researched and uses laughter in her practice. So return to check it out. Tomorrow how laughter helps you mentally, emotionally and spritually?
Agapelife

Laughter relieves these negative 3

Laughter relieves these three negative emotions - 1. anger, 2. anxiety 3. boredom
Anger
I remember when a patient was angry and demanding, I would say something funny or do something funny which would induce laughter from the angry person - O did I say angry - the person was no longer angry.

Anxiety
Did you notice that when you went for an injection or blood tests, if the nurse or technician was saying something funny, you hardly felt the needle?

Boredom
When a job is boring or tedious or you are in a boring situation like waiting in traffic jams, listening to a comedy cd or joking or laughing with a colleague suddenly alleviate the boredom. I know the DJ in our local radio morning show always has funny incidents or stories.

According to A. Hortop, we should laugh fifty times a day to have great health. Did you gasp at 50 times. This includes giggles, belly laughs, grinning,peals of laughter. Dr E. Chow stated 8 belly laughs a day in her qigong therapy.

Tomorrow, we will look at how laughter exercises certain parts of the body to good health.
Agapelife

Muscles needed for a smile and for a frown

This question was placed on BC forum and no-one came close to the answer for a frown but one person gave the right answer for a smile. Most of the respondents stated that more muscles were needed for a frown.

We use 72 muscles to Frown. We use only 14 muscles to Smile. Smile is the beginning of a laugh. Both are infectious.
Laughter has been re-discovered as a Powerful Arsenal in the battle against many mental and physical diseases.

Even though we seem to be exercising more muscles for a frown, it is laughter that has been called "Inner Jogging" Norman Cousins. That is why it has helped patients who had poor physical endurance or poor limbs that prevented them to jog exteriorly.
Seriously folks, laughter has been given a boost in the Health Care System, finally!

Studies have shown that people who laughed and had a good sense of humor were 40% less likely to have heart attacks or strokes. Some Hospitals have included formal and informal laughter therapy programs. India has laughing clubs as many as there are rotary clubs in the United States. During the National Health Week in Wales, prominence was given to Laughter workshops conducted by none other than a Laughter Specialist.

Tomorrow we will continue with Laughter and Humor. What emotions it releases? Explore the functions of Humor and laughter?
Forget about apples. How many Laughs a day will keep the doctor away??
Agapelife