The latest article from the Overcome Depression + Thrive Blog.

Recent studies show that laughter is proven to be effective in reducing depression and anxiety! 

There’s just one problem!

How can you reap the benefits of laughter when the last thing you feel like doing in the midst of depression is laughing?

Well, stay tuned because in today’s episode of Overcome Depression + Thrive I’m going to be sharing 3 quick and easy ways to add more laughter into your life, even if you don’t think it’s possible for you.

Press play now to listen to the Podcast Episode or watch the video below.

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READ TRANSCRIPT BELOW:

Hi and welcome back, as always, it’s great to have you here!  I’m your host Marie O’Neil, creator of the highly transformative Complete Self-Help System For Overcoming Depression and the Author of How To Create A Depression-Free Life.

Now, we’ve all heard the phrase; Laughter is the best medicine and this statement is even proven to hold true when it comes to depression and anxiety.

You see, numerous studies show that laughter not only reduces depression and anxiety, but also boosts optimism and self-esteem.

Which is everything we’re looking for when we’re stuck in the depths of depression, right?

But, you know as well as I do that laughing seems all but impossible whilst we’re depressed. 

I mean, if someone told me to start laughing while I was severely depressed, I probably would have bopped them over the head.

So, why am I sharing this with you today?

I mean, how are you supposed to reap all the health-giving benefits of laughter, if you can’t laugh? 

How can you receive all the highly-beneficial effects which are proven to reduce depression and anxiety, if you don’t feel like laughing?

Seems impossible, right?!

Well, fortunately it’s not!  And, that’s what I want to share with you today. 

I’m going to be sharing 3 quick and easy ways to add more laughter into your life, so you can start to alleviate depression and anxiety, even if you think laughing is impossible for you right now!

But, first, I want us to explore together why laughter is so vital when it comes to alleviating the likes of depression and anxiety.

Because, scientists will tell you it’s simply down to the chemicals which are released when we laugh. And, they’re right! When we genuinely laugh “feel good” chemicals known as endorphins are released into our system.

Which makes us feel happier, more uplifted, lighter, brighter, more positive and they help to boost our immune system and overall health and well-being.  So, it’s easy to see why laughter is considered a great medicine.  

But, this isn’t the complete answer!

Because, there’s more going on “behind the scenes”, than just this chemical effect. 

When, you laugh there’s something much greater going on in your system!

Which is vital to be aware of when you’re suffering in the likes of depression and anxiety. 

It’s this, that takes laughter from being just a great medicine to being one of the best medicines for depression.

So, what is it? 

What do you need to be aware of to release yourself from the clutches of depression or anxiety faster?

Well, it’s the fact that our stomach area is the natural “storehouse” for anything we suppress.

Now, what does this mean?  And, how does it relate to depression, anxiety and laughter?

Well, firstly, it means that anytime you hold back your anger, anytime you feel like crying but you hold back those tears, anytime you’re afraid to open up your heart or you bury your love out of a fear of losing yourself or looking weak, anytime you don’t speak your truth, all of these authentic thoughts and feelings get de-pressed and stored in your stomach area. 

Now, this might seem like a really strange concept to get your head around, but simply ask yourself:  

• Have you ever had a gut-wrenching experience? 
• Have you ever felt sick in certain situations?
• Have you ever been so sad, anxious or angry and your stomach felt like it was all tied up in knots? 
• Have you ever had “butterflies” in your stomach?

I’m sure we’ve all had these experiences many times throughout our lives, right?

We’re all aware of these experiences.

But, what the majority of us are missing is that each and every one of these common, everyday experiences are giving us first-hand knowledge of how our stomach plays such a crucial roll in our overall health and well-being.

Simply because our stomach is the storehouse of anything and everything we suppress.

All sorts of emotions; grief, anger, sadness, love, even laughter all get suppressed within our stomach area. 

This is why there’s such as thing called: “emotional eating”. 

Whether we’re aware of it or not, all that food we’re shovelling down our throats, is just another attempt of ours to bury or “keep a lid on”, all those authentic thoughts and feelings we have suppressed in the storehouse of our stomach. 

Now, why is all this vital to be aware of and how does it relate to laughter bringing relief to depression, anxiety or other mental health concerns?

Well, because a good hearty belly laugh helps release all that tension within our stomach area. It shakes everything up. It starts to dislodge all those de-pressed emotions which are unknowingly keeping you stuck. 

That’s why there is so much truth in the phrase: Laughter is the best medicine!

Because, a genuine hearty belly laugh shakes up all that suppressed tension, it cleanses the storehouse of your stomach and helps free you from what’s keeping you stuck in a less-than healthy state; mentally, emotionally and physically.   

Laughter is a natural, health-giving tonic, it’s a cleanser, a healer, a tool that we can all use to keep our entire body-mind system in tip-top condition. 

Now, you may be thinking…

“Well, that’s great and all! It’s nice to know laughter is fabulous for alleviating depression and anxiety but this advice is useless to me because I cannot laugh in depression!”  

“How can I laugh when there’s nothing to laugh about? ”

“How can I laugh when life is getting me down?”

And, I too would have said these very same words when I was stuck in the depths of depression.   

But, let me share 3 quick and easy ways to add more laughter into your life, even if you don’t feel like laughing, so you can start reducing depression and anxiety in your life.

So, here they are…

3 Quick Ways To Add More Laughter Into Your Life (Even If You Don’t Feel Like Laughing)

QUICK WAY: #1 – Join a laughter group in your local area. 

Now, what is a laughter group?  A laughter group (which is sometimes called: laughter yoga or laughter therapy) is where a group of people come together to practice involuntary laughter to reap all the health-giving benefits laughter can bring. 

Now, at first, even the thought of attending such a group to laugh in front of a bunch of strangers, can seem pretty daunting.  But, you can rest assured everyone else in the group is feeling exactly the same way, they’re just as uncomfortable as you are.