By Dr AK Srivastava
“A day without laughter is a day wasted.” – Charlie Chaplin
“With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come.” – William Shakespeare
God has gifted mankind with a rare and wonderful ability – laughter. Have you ever noticed that most of the creatures don’t have this unique talent? It is the best medicine for emotional and mental health. Today, most of us are living in stress from our jobs, family and financial problems. The best way to counter all such problems and stay calm and relaxed is to keep laughing. Laughter keeps us cool, enhances our immune system and motivates us to face the challenges of life with better confidence and determination. It provides us with exceptional energy and support to bounce back from hurdles with fresh determination and gives us inspiration to keep going ignoring the failures of the past.
Laughter has many medicinal values. It relieves us from the hurly burly of life and relaxes our muscles by releasing hormones that repair our cells and save us from going into depression. The company of hilarious friends and colleagues improves blood circulation and enhances oxygen intake. It relieves us of pain and works as a medicine for cardiovascular problems. Laughing regulates our heartbeat and blood pressure. It also burns calories. Everyone likes a cheerful face at our workplace and finds it easier to adjust to a smiling and pleasant colleague. One cheerful and amiable colleague changes the entire atmosphere of the workplace. S/he infuses freshness and better team spirit promoting better output of the entire team. It is observed that children keep laughing most of the time. This helps them to grow faster. They have fantastic ability to mix with other children of different nature and background. They enjoy the zest of life ignoring their surroundings and backgrounds. But this carefree attitude and freedom starts vanishing as they grow to face the numerous challenges of life. That is why we always have a strong urge to get back to our childhood when we are grown-ups. Hence, we should spend time with children.
A sense of humour is an inborn talent but many intelligent people develop it as an essential part of our emotional intelligence which is instrumental in our progress and success. We know that children always appreciate teachers who are lively and pleasant in their classrooms. It helps them to learn their lessons and they remember the pleasantness of the teacher throughout their lives. Besides teachers’ knowledge, their cheerful disposition is instrumental in the learning process of children.
Laughing really strengthens human relations. It is important to exchange pleasantries with everyone in the family and neighbourhood. We have seen that retired elderly people often form laughter clubs in our localities. They want to release stress, anxiety and boredom. Many of them feel ignored or neglected in their families because other members of the family are too busy in their workplaces. Such laughter clubs help them to renew their positivity, energy and vigour. Everyone needs some excitement and freshness which they can enjoy with fellow human beings in order to heal the injuries and disappointments of life.
“If we couldn’t laugh we would all go insane.” – Robert Frost
The importance of laughter has been appreciated by writers, film makers and people associated with social media. Several writers have concentrated on promoting pleasantness and amiability among their readers. That is why there is always a Laughter Column in all magazines and newspapers. The TV serials which make people laugh are always much popular and they are shown at prime time of the day as their TRP is very high. In recent times, we have seen the amazingly growing popularity of jokes and fun-loving items on social media. People like to forward them to their friends in order to give some pleasant moments to their loved ones in this stressful life. We can find many opportunities to laugh in our day-to-day life finding something unusual in the usual set-up. Many people like to share their experiences and embarrassments to make others laugh.
In conclusion, we can say that laughter is the best medicine for us. It is free, spontaneous and in abundance. It may not add many years to our lives, but it will certainly add life to our age. It is contagious and appreciated by all at every age and society. It has more lasting and powerful effect on us than we realise. Hence, don’t be serious and keep laughing.
“Laughter heals all wounds, and that’s one thing that everybody shares. No matter what you’re going through, it makes you forget about your problems. I think the world should keep laughing.” – Kevin Hart
(Dr AK Srivastava is Principal, DAV, Inter College, Dehradun)
