5 wonderful ways to laugh joy into your holiday season!

Laughter is a great way to de-stress during the holidays.  For many people, the holiday time means piling on shopping, decorating, parties, entertaining guests, and travel to an already busy schedule.  For those of us in the Northern part of the planet, it’s also the darkest time of the year.

Not so long ago, the rhythm of life slowed way down in the winter months. With artificial light so widespread, our productive time could be 24/7, and sometime it seems that’s what’s expected of us!  But humans aren’t built to function well that way.  While we can’t turn the clock back 100 plus years—nor would most of us want to--we can reclaim a more humane and connected way of life.

Here are five fun ways laughter can help:

1.      When your frantic brain lists all the things you need to get done, let yourself have a laugh at the anxiety.  Ask yourself—“do I REALLY need to do ALL these things?”  The holidays are meant to help us connect with love and joy. Take a moment to think about what is most important to you, and start prioritizing.  Check in with a significant other or good friend, if you need help. What can you cross off your list?

2.      Make a date with yourself to savor a long dark night.  Slow down. Take a deep breath. Snuggle in and have a cup of tea. Laugh at the shear decadence of it!

3.      Connect with the people around you—when you’re standing on line at a store, talk to the person next to you instead of fuming with impatience. Share a smile, maybe even a laugh.  Perhaps it will spread up and down the line! And when you get to the end, see if you can spread that smile to the most likely harried cashier.

4.      Get a small group together and laugh in sync with the holiday lights: every time the lights turn on, have a quick “ha”—most likely you won’t even make it through a minute of this without bursting into spontaneous laughter.

5.      At your next holiday gathering, greet each person with a hug and shared laughter before sitting down to eat. It may make all the difference in getting along with your loved ones.

May your walls know joy, may every room hold laughter, and every window open to great possibility        -- Mary Anne Radmacher

WISHING MUCH LAUGHTER AND HOLIDAY JOY TO ALL!

Shapeshift Your Mood with Laughter!

In Laughter Yoga we say "emotion follows motion"--what we do with our body affects our mood. The simple act of laughing can literally change your body chemistry, shifting your outlook from negative to positive.

3 simple ways to use the power of laughter:

Take a laughter break

• This simple Laughter Yoga exercise is an instant vacation from stress! Breathing in through your nose, raise your arms over your hear and hold your breath for 3-5 beats. Laugh, exhaling through your mouth, while bringing your arms down to your sides. If you are in a place where you can't laugh out loud, try silent laughter, or an out breath while smiling.

Laugh more easily with others

• We are more likely to laugh when we have a laughter support system! Ask a friend or co-worker (or several) to be a "lighten up" buddy. When you need to let go of stress or shift your mood, call your buddy and ask them to laugh with you for a minute. If you can't find a willing partner, you can find other laughter fans at Laughter Clubs around the world. Look at http://www.laughteryoga.org/ for the one nearest you.

You can choose laughter

• When minor stresses come up, you can make the decision to laugh instead of acting out of disappointment or anger. For instance, when someone cuts me off in traffic, my body tenses, my blood boils, and I feel the urge to curse at them loudly! But even if I do curse at them, it really ends up hurting me. I am left angry and wound up, with unhealthy stress hormones coursing through my body. I've decided to try laughing instead of cursing. It releases healthy chemicals in my body so I end up feeling good, and it inspires some of the drivers around me to laugh too!

If you want more laughter tips to transform your life or workplace, contact Annie about laughter programs for businesses, organizations or individuals at 510-655-1433.

Annie's next blog: Learning to laugh away travel stress