Laughter Yoga And Its Benefits

By Patricia | November 11, 2008
Laughter Yoga For Stress Relief

Laughter Yoga is also called Hasya Yoga and is a technique that makes use of a combination of empowering playful exercises, such as laughter, which are simple and tension-relieving. With the help of soft, soothing Yoga stretching and breathing exercises, clapping rhythmically and chanting of Ho Ho Ha Ha Ha in a group, what starts out as feigned laughter soon becomes real laughter? The path of Laughter Yoga postulates that one can laugh one’s way to good health, improve overall well-being and promote world peace through personal transformation.

One of the techniques used by laughter clubs is the grounding dance that is performed subsequent to a laughter session and meditation. Since Laughter Yoga is a very strong and lively workout, it energizes the whole body while, simultaneously, opening up deep layers within one’s the sub-conscious mind. This facilitates release of all negative emotions.

Laughter Yoga Benefits

Laughter yoga is supposed to offer numerous benefits to its practitioners. Let us take a look at how the different laughter yoga exercises can benefit the different parts of the body.

  • Laughter yoga encourages deep, diaphragmatic breathing. Over the course of their lives, most people get used to shallow breathing. However, when you breathe in deeply by using the powerful muscles of the diaphragm, oxygenated air reaches deep into your lungs from where it is transported to the different parts of your body through the blood. Thus, the deep breathing techniques used in Hasya Yoga have a beneficial effect on your lungs and can help to combat a number of respiratory ailments. In addition, the other cells and organs of your body also begin to function better as they receive a richer supply of oxygenated blood.
  • Deep breathing is very good for relieving mental stress and so is laughter. Laughter Yoga combines both these stress-busting techniques and is a very effective technique for dealing with stress. Stress has been identified as one of the major causes of a number of ailments and diseases and performing laughter yoga exercise on a regular basis can help you to lead a happier and healthier life.
  • Yoga laughter therapy can also help to boost the immune system; this happens in two ways. It has been scientifically proven that stress suppresses and weakens the immune system. By relieving stress, laughter yoga helps to keep your immune system functioning at optimum levels. The deep breathing techniques used in laughter yoga also help to deliver richer, oxygenated blood to the cells of the body that make up the immune system. A strong immune system makes you less prone to illness and diseases and can also help you recover faster if you do contract an infection or disease.
  • One of the most important laughter yoga benefits is the impact that is has on psychological wellbeing of the person. Laughter is the best medicine when you are feeling sad or depressed. Yoga laughter therapy allows you to expel all negative emotions in the form of laughter so that you continue to maintain a positive outlook on life and living. It is also very effective in treating depression.
  • Recent studies also show that laughter yoga could play an effective role in the management of diabetes by lowering blood sugar levels.

When Did Laughter Yoga Came In To Existence

Laughter Yoga was brought into being, and practice, by Dr. Madan Kataria, a Mumbai family physician. He started his first laughter club in 1995 and, since than, has been a catalyst for more than 5,000 Laughter Clubs in 40 countries of the world. Most of them are free.

Then again, as everywhere, the critics of Laughter Yoga (who call it unbridled howling) say that real stress relieving benefits are to be found in inner stimuli rather than in the mere physical activity of laughter. But, as has been rightly proven, laughter is beneficial to the mind and body – and today everyone requires lots of it. Laughter Yoga, which starts out with simulated laughter, then really starts to affect the mind and, subsequently, the body in a very positive way.

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