February 8 is Laugh and Get Rich Day. Even though the world can seem very dark at times, finding a little time to laugh each day can make things a little brighter. There’s even Laughter Yoga!
Benefits of Laughter
Laughter does a number of wonderful things for us.
From webmd.com, laughter:
- helps reduce stress hormones;
- boosts the immune system;
- benefits the circulatory system by boosting heart rate, regulating blood pressure, and improving blood flow; and
- lessens stress and depression.
How to Practice Laughter Yoga
I usually close my Gentle Yoga for Cancer Patients and Survivors with a round of laughter yoga, a tradition passed down to me from the previous teacher. It’s really easy and we’re all usually generally laughing by the time we’re done.
- Sit comfortably with a long spine and bring your hands to your heart center in anjali mudra.
- Take a deep breath in and lift your heart center skyward (remember to breath as often as you need to).
- As you exhale, bow slightly and briefly say “ha” eight times as if you’re laughing. Deeply inhale and repeat twice more.
- Repeat steps 2 and 3, replacing “ha” with “ho”.
- Repeat again, replacing “ho” with “he”.
- Close with “namaste”.
Yours in love and laughter,
Debra
