love to laugh ?
let your laughter loose with The Cambridge Laughter Connection
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Why might
laughter be helpful
for people with M.E. ?
" As you can see there are just so many ways to do silly things which make you laugh...... Feedback from the group was that the session was therapeutic, energizing, fun and full of useful tips. So thanks Jo for running a great session and providing all the laughter facts , it is safe to say you are a funny guy!" - Nottingham M.E. Self-Help Group
“The feedback from the members has been overwhelmingly successful: ‘Great, did me good’; ‘Fantastic’; ‘Laughter is the best medicine indeed. Let’s laugh more!’ and ‘Very good leveller. Brings people together’. So on behalf of the Trustees and members of Sheffield M.E. group, I would like to take this opportunity to thank you very much for your valued contribution” - Sheffield M.E. Group
Many of the benefits of laughter
are particularly
relevant to
people with health problems. Jo is just coming out of seven years
living
with M.E. (Myalgic
Encephalopathy), and one of
the directions he enjoys
most is working with various M.E. groups around the country,
organising gentle
laughter workshops which fit their needs.
So why might laughter be so helpful if you have M.E. ? well ...
·
Laughter is gentle form of
aerobic exercise
Physical exercise is a real problem for all of us, but laughter can provide us with some of the benefits in a very gentle way: increasing our blood flow, helping to keep the heart active, expanding the lungs
· Laughter is a way to
gently tone muscles
Laughing uses your stomach muscles, which are important in preserving core stability and preventing problems like back-pain and hernia. Laughter gives us a safe and undemanding way to keep these muscles strong.
·
Laughter raises your
white-blood cell count
These are the cells that fight off infections - a recurrent problem for most of us with M.E. In studies of the blood of people who had laughed more, white-blood cell levels were up significantly. See this article from The Times
·
Laughter lowers stress
All of us with M.E. have plenty of stress to deal with, and much of the recent research into the illness suggests that overactive adrenal glands may play in a role in our symptoms. But tests have shown that laughter reduces the levels of the stress hormones adrenaline and cortisol, taking the strain off our overworked adrenals. (For a summary of Dr Lee Berk's research in this area read this article in The Guardian)
·
Laughter lifts your mood
When you laugh, your brain releases more endorphins - the chemicals that keep you happy and help you sleep. Sharing a good laugh - and learning to laugh more often - can ensure a good level of endorphins in the blood throughout the day. In itself, a better mood makes you feel more up and energised, and so adds that little bit to the amount that you can do if your energy levels are very low. Click here for more research on laughter and endorphins.
·
Laughter can provide pain
relief
Increased endorphin levels can have other benefits too, as they are a natural painkiller. So if you suffer from joint and muscle pain, as so many of us with M.E. do, this can ease the symptoms. You may have read Norman Cousins' book Anatomy of an Illness, which documents the writer's use of regular laughter to keep on top of his arthritic pain. The "Rx laughter" project in the USA is developing laughter as a pain-relief technique for a wide range of groups, including chemotherapy patients. See: www.rxlaughter.org
· Laughter teaches you to make the best use of your lungs
According to yoga and M.E. expert Fiona Agombar "most people with M.E. ... come in breathing too fast from the upper chest, which exacerbates muscle aches, low energy and poor sleep" (Interaction Magazine issue 57, p.9 September 2006). Laughter stretches and loosens the muscles of the chest, and teaches you the benefits of breathing fully and deeply. The ideal way to develop the habits of deeper, more relaxing breathing.
So
while laughter
isn't a cure, it's certainly one of
the things that helps keep your energy up, your body ticking over, and
your
immune system in a good state.
M.E. and laughter workshops for 2009 planned for Tunbridge Wells and
Milton
Keynes. For details click here.
To organise a laughter workshop for your M.E. group email jo.eadie@laughternetwork.co.uk
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Our next laugh is at 10.45am on May 9th 2009 at
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"I have never done anything like that before and it was great fun."
"I
certainly felt lighter and more alert for the rest of the day"
“It was such
fun.
I felt really energised and found myself chuckling out loud for the
rest of the
day.”
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us on ...
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