Yoga offers several health advantages if practised frequently. Laughter yoga, or laughing yoga, is a style of yoga that incorporates a sense of humour into the practice. You’ve probably seen this kind of yoga practised by senior citizens in groups. One of the most popular forms of laughter yoga is Laughing Yoga, which seeks to bring out the inner kid and promote pleasure while relieving everyday pressures.
Laughter yoga also enables a larger intake of oxygen, which stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system. This is the system in your body that is responsible for natural relaxation. The goal of laughter yoga is to educate individuals on how to laugh spontaneously, rather than depending on external sources of delight. Laughter-inducing activities have fallen out of favour as people’s schedules become busier.
Laughter Yoga: How to Do It
Please continue reading to learn more about laughing yoga’s various stages of development.
- Warm-up exercises are a good place to start. Make a commotion and a ha ha ha chant. This may be a good icebreaker. When clapping, ensure your fingers and palms are in full touch with one another.
- The diaphragm is stimulated by enthusiastic clapping and chanting, which boosts good energy. If you’re having a good time with a group, establish eye contact, walk about, and meet new people.
- It is important to include laughter and deep breathing exercises into one’s daily routine to reduce physical and mental stress.
- Inhale via the nose for five seconds, and exhale out of the mouth. Exhale through your lips and lower your arms as you lean forward at the waist.
- Playfully act like a kid. Clap, say “very excellent,” “yay,” and cheer loudly. Maintain eye contact with them while simultaneously swinging your arms upward.
- There are various ways to get everyone in the group laughing, including those listed in the following section. Deep breathing should be used in between each one of them.
- It is possible to practice laughter meditation while sitting down, with your legs curled and your eyes open. Always be sure to keep eye contact with the other group members. Make sure your palms are facing outward. Drive them ahead while yelling “ha, ha, ha” in a stern voice.
- Then shout ‘ha, ha, ha,’ while pushing your hands down twice. Repeat the exercise, pausing for a minute between each round to allow yourself to relax fully. Start laughing quietly and progressively after a minute. Take a few deep breaths and let the laughing build-up for around five to ten minutes.
Does it work?
When it comes to improving your mood, you’ve undoubtedly observed that laughing is a great way to do so. More focus is being paid to the long-term advantages of laughing regularly. Endorphins and other happy chemicals such as dopamine and serotonin are released when someone laughs. It also reduces the production of stress chemicals, such as cortisol. All of these benefits are associated with a more positive outlook on life, decreased anxiety, stress, and depression levels, and lower blood pressure and heart rate.
In addition, laughing with others may improve interpersonal connections by fostering a sense of community and camaraderie. People who feel safe and secure tend to have a better quality of life. When it comes to laughing, studies think that your body can’t tell the difference between fake laughter and genuine. Simulated laughing has been shown to reduce sadness and boost mood, according to a new study. As the authors claim, most individuals may readily participate in laughing exercises since they involve minimal thought and don’t depend on subjective comedy.
Laughter yoga has been found in other research to help temporarily lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol, enhance mood, increase energy levels, and promote a more optimistic outlook. It may be as helpful as aerobic exercise in lowering one’s self-reported stress. Laughter yoga shouldn’t be used instead of therapies that you are already receiving from your doctor since, even though it could assist promote improved long-term health, it is not a substitute for such treatments. It may be utilized in combination.
Conclusion
Laughter yoga is becoming more popular as a pleasant method to laugh and take oneself less seriously. A typical session consists of different exercises, improvement, and breathing methods to help you focus on the present moment and remove yourself from the stresses of everyday life. Laughing consciously and with sincerity is one way to relieve stress, and combining these techniques may do just that. Laughing yoga is an excellent approach to letting go, having fun, and rediscovering laughter’s pleasure.
