Blindspot!
From Issue: 644 [Read full issue]
Funny Bone
Just laugh. That's right ... laugh. Hakuna matata! Don't worry, be happy! Sometimes life just stinks and there's not much you can do to change it, so you might as well laugh.
It's so bad that as we age we tend to forget what made childhood so magical. One study showed that by the time you reach kindergarten, you laugh about 300 times a day. In contrast, the typical adult laughs a wimpy seventeen times a day. No wonder children are so much happier! Why are we so serious? Mayby it's because we've been taught that laughing too much is childish. We must learn to laugh again.
According to Peter Doskoch, laughter:
- Loosens up the mental gears and helps us think more creatively
- Helps us cope with the difficulties of life
- Reduces stress levels
- Relaxes us as it lowers our heart rate and blood pressure
- Connects us with others and counteracts feelings of alienation, a major factor in depression and suicide
- Releases endorphin, the brain's natural painkillers
If you're not laughing much, what can you do to start again? I suggest developing your own "humour collection," a collection of books, cartoons, videos, ideas - whatever is funny to you. Then whenever you're feeling down, or taking yourself way too seriously, visit your collection.
Learn to laugh at yourself when strange or stupid things happen to you, because they will. As someone once said, "One of the best things people can have up their sleeve is a good funny bone."
Compiled From:
"The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens" - Sean Covey, pp. 232, 233