Is Laughter Important in Your Wellness?

When people think about their mental health and wellness, they often consider things like counseling, sleep, exercise, and medical treatment. Even things like healthy relationship boundaries and work limits are considered. One thing people can overlook, however, is the importance of joy and laughter in your life.

How Laughter Helps Your Wellness and Mental Health

People have been curious about the benefits of laughter for a long time. Scientists began studying the effects of laughter in the early 1800s looking at things like the muscles used for smiling, the reflexive nature of laughter, and the social element of laughter. Since then, research evolved to examine the physiological effects of laughter.

One study found that laughter increases the heart rate and blood pressure. Laughter has also been shown to improve the immune system, decrease stress hormones, and increase endorphins. The psychological benefits of laughter are also well-documented. Laughter has been shown to reduce anxiety, depression, and stress. It can also increase self-esteem and reduce negative thinking. – Dr. Michelle Bengtson

Considering these benefits, it is clear that laughter helps improve wellness and mental health. It is one of the things you can do on your journey of healing, wholeness, and free living.

Does the Bible Support These Ideas?

The Bible deals with complex issues like sin, forgiveness, faith, and grace. It is hard to believe that a book about such serious things would have anything to say about laughter. But the Bible mentions laughter between 20-40 times. With so much to say about laughter, it’s clear that God values it and wants you to know how He feels about laughter and joy in your life.

• There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens…a time to weep and a time to laugh. – Ecclesiastes 3:1,4 NIVA cheerful heart is good medicine. – Proverbs 17:22, NIV
• He will yet fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy. – Job 8:21, NIV
• Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. – Luke 6:21, NIV

The people that lived in biblical times had struggles just like people have today. The details may be different, but they were struggles that caused worry, anger, stress, envy, and illness. And even then, God included laughter as one of the things people needed to consider, just as you do today.

People have discovered specific ways that laughter improves your wellness and mental health. Consider how these benefits would help you.

Shift Your Mood with Laughter

Laughter improves people’s moods. This is partly because of the release of endorphins when you laugh. This release of endorphins can reduce pain just like a painkiller. The increase in endorphins shifts things in one’s brain, helping one have a better mood.

Reduce Your Stress with Laughter

When you laugh, your body decreases cortisol and adrenaline, two stress hormones. Laughter can help your body relax and provide a release of tension you’re holding in your brain and your body.

Stay Healthy with Laughter

“Studies have shown that laughter can increase the number of immune cells in your body and help you fight off infection.” (Dr. Michelle Bengtson) This increase can help people be more resistant to certain diseases. This shows that laughter has a direct physical impact on your well-being and health.

Improve Heart Health with Laughter

Another way laughter helps your health is by helping your cardiovascular system. Laughter increases blood flow and heart rate. Add the benefit of reduced cortisol levels that lower stress; laughter is a great recipe for improved wellness and heart health.

Lower Blood Pressure with Laughter

Studies are examining the connection between increased laughter and blood pressure. The studies so far have been small, but they are pointing toward laughter resulting in lower blood pressure. “The researchers believe that laughter may help to lower blood pressure by increasing the activity of the “relaxation response.” This is the body’s natural way of lowering stress levels. When the relaxation response is activated, the heart rate slows and blood pressure decreases.” (Dr. Michelle Bengtson)

Increase Energy with Laughter

Laughing is a physical activity. It requires energy to laugh. As you laugh, your muscles contract giving your body a little workout. This increases your heart rate, burns calories, and boosts energy like other workouts. Laughter won’t give you a six-pack, but it can help you get a little energy during your day.

Lose Weight with Laughter

Laughing cannot replace a healthy diet and exercise, but it can help you lose a few pounds. In a study, researchers found that laughing at a funny show expended more calories than watching something that didn’t result in laughter. The difference was as high as 20%. “15 minutes of laughter [daily] over one year may translate into annual weight loss of 4.5 pounds.” (Dr. Maciej Buchowski) Sounds like a fun way to shed a few pounds.

Get Social with Laughter

Because so many things that illicit laughter are social, it is no surprise that connection is a natural byproduct of laughter. Laughing with others creates a positive shared experience. Participating in things that result in laughter bond and connect people. These connections can help overall wellness and improve mental health.

Stay Positive with Laughter

A big challenge when you are struggling with wellness or mental health issues is mindset. Laughter can help with that. With all the physiological benefits of laughter as well as the social connections it builds, laughter can help you stay positive in hard situations. People who laugh more are more likely to see hope in hard situations. Laughter can help you find silver linings even on the cloudiest of days.

How Do You Make Room for Joy and Laughter?

If laughter and joy are so important, how do you make space for them in your life? How do you incorporate them in ways that impact your wellness and mental health? And how do you do this even when things feel hard?

Three simple ways you can make room for joy and laughter are:

• Fake it: Don’t wait until you feel it. Just laugh. Make yourself laugh. Start getting comfortable with how your body feels. As you do this, it may become easier to laugh naturally.
• Get help: Connecting with someone else can help you laugh. When you are with another person who laughs at something funny, it becomes easier for you to laugh. The shared experience makes laughter feel more natural.
• Discover funny things: In hard seasons people tend to focus on things that are filled with hard feelings and drama. Instead of scrolling the news, try watching a funny show. Take a break once an hour and watch a funny video or read a joke. These little things can help lighten your mood and lead to laughter.

You Don’t Need to Figure This Out Alone

One of the hardest things is wanting to do something like add laughter in your life, but not feel like you can. That’s when it is good to seek help. A counselor is trained to help with an array of concerns, even something like discovering more joy in your life.

Reach out to a counselor to see how they can help you incorporate laughter into your life. No matter what you are facing, there is space to discover joy. Contact our office today. One of our counselors can walk with you to find joy, improve your wellness, and help with any mental health concerns.

You don’t have to do this alone.“Without counsel plans fail, but with many advisers they succeed.” (Proverbs 15:22, ESV) Find the help you need so you can succeed. We are here to help.