A Little Laughter Can Mean a Lot
“A good laugh heals a lot of hurts.” – Madeleine L’Engle, “A Ring of Endless Light”
This week’s topic seems like it should be easy, but sometimes it feels like the hardest thing in the world. Caregiving can put us on an emotional roller coaster at times, filled with stress, decision-making, and sacrifice. Taking a moment to experience happiness and laughter may feel awkward or inappropriate at those times, but it’s also a great way to cope and might be exactly what we need as a stress reliever.
And laughing with someone else is even better. Laughing together builds connections between people, and it allows them to share a moment of happiness in even the most challenging of situations. That’s why laughter is so contagious! Perhaps best of all, sharing moments of happiness and laughter with your loved one can benefit both of you and improve your relationship.
Science tells us that laughter can benefit our mental and physical health in many ways by:
Reducing stress, allowing us to cope better with challenging experiences.
Supporting the immune system, activating antibodies that attack viruses and tumors in the body, and counteracting the decrease in these antibodies caused by long periods of stress.
Distracting us from physical and emotional pain, and relaxing us so we can better cope with pain.
Releasing feel-good chemicals in the brain, including serotonin, dopamine, and endorphins, which contribute to our feelings of happiness and pleasure.
So the next time you begin to feel burnout from your role as a caregiver, try to find some moments to experience humor, and see how your mood and energy change. Here are three tools that might help:
START WITH A SMILE: It's SO much easier to initiate a laugh when you're already smiling – think of it as a warm-up!
PLAY: Humor begins with a spirit of playfulness – starting with being silly! “Having a sense of humor helps us to recognize the absurdity in situations of tension, frustration and tragedy.” – Tracie Abram, MSU Extension.
BE LIGHTHEARTED: Don’t take yourself too seriously. Brush off your shortcomings. Learn to laugh at your mistakes.
I know that choosing joy can feel nearly impossible sometimes, but taking just a moment to do or think about something that makes you smile can be worth a lot. So take a moment and think … what could bring YOU a bit of sunshine right now?