Laughter Therapy

[Guest]

Laughter's Effects on the Body

In the last few decades, researchers have studied laughter's effects on
the body and turned up some potentially interesting information on how it
affects us:

# Blood flow. Researchers at the University of Maryland studied the
effects on blood vessels when people were shown either comedies or
dramas. After the screening, the blood vessels of the group who watched
the comedy behaved normally — expanding and contracting easily. But
the blood vessels in people who watched the drama tended to tense up,
restricting blood flow.

# Immune response. Increased stress is associated with decreased
immune system response, says Provine. Some studies have shown that
the ability to use humor may raise the level of infection-fighting antibodies
in the body and boost the levels of immune cells, as well.

# Blood sugar levels. One study of 19 people with diabetes looked at the
effects of laughter on blood sugar levels. After eating, the group attended
a tedious lecture. On the next day, the group ate the same meal and then
watched a comedy. After the comedy, the group had lower blood sugar
levels than they did after the lecture.


Laughing It Up for Quality of Life

Laughter is part of a larger picture. "Laughter is social, so any health
benefits might really come from being close with friends and family, and
not the laughter itself," he says/

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/04/07/health/webmd/main1481492.shtml

[Guest]

1) NUDITY

I was driving with my three young children one warm summer evening
when a woman in the convertible ahead of us stood up and waved. She
was stark naked! As I was reeling from the shock, I heard my
5-year-old shout from the back seat, "Mom, that lady isn't wearing a seat
belt!"

2) OPINIONS
On the first day of school, a first-grader handed his teacher a note from
his mother. The note read, "The opinions expressed by this child are not
necessarily those of his parents."

3) KETCHUP
A woman was trying hard to get the ketchup out of the bottle. During her
struggle the phone rang so she asked her 4-year-old daughter to answer
the phone. "Mommy can't come to the phone to talk to you right now.
She's hitting the bottle."

4) MORE NUDITY
A little boy got lost at the YMCA and found himself in the women's locker
room. When he was spotted, the room burst into shrieks, with ladies
grabbing towels and running for cover. The little boy watched in
amazement and then asked, "What's the matter, haven't you ever seen
a little boy before?"

5) POLICE # 1
While taking a routine vandalism report at an elementary school, I was
interrupted by a little girl about 6 years old. Looking up and down at my
uniform, she asked, "Are you a cop?" "Yes," I answered and continued
writing the report. "My mother said if I ever needed help I should ask the
police. Is that right?" "Yes, that's right," I told her. "Well, then," she said
as she extended her foot toward me, "would you please tie my shoe?"

6) POLICE # 2
It was the end of the day when I parked my police van in front of the
station. As I gathered my equipment, my K-9 partner, Jake, was barking,
and I saw a little boy staring in at me "Is that a dog you got back there?"
he asked. "It sure is," I replied. Puzzled, the boy looked at me and then
towards the back of the van. Finally he said, "What'd he do?"

7) ELDERLY
While working for an organization that delivers lunches to elderly shut-ins,
I used to take my 4-year-old daughter on my afternoon rounds. She was
unfailingly intrigued by the various appliances of old age, particularly the
canes, walkers and wheelchairs. One day I found her staring at a pair of
false teeth soaking in a glass. As I braced myself for the inevitable
barrage of questions, she merely turned and whispered,
"The tooth fairy will never believe this!"

DRESS-UP
A little girl was watching her parents dress for a party. When she saw her
dad donning his tuxedo, she warned, "Daddy, you shouldn't wear that
suit." "And why not, darling?" "You know that it always gives you a
headache the next morning."

9) SCHOOL
A little girl had just finished her first week of school. "I'm just wasting my
time," she said to her mother. "I can't read, I can't write and they won't
let me talk!"

10) BIBLE
A little boy opened the big family Bible. He was fascinated as he fingered
through the old pages. Suddenly, something fell out of the Bible. He
picked up the object and looked at it. What he saw was an old leaf that
had been pressed in between the pages. "Mama , look what I found," the
boy called out. "What have you got there, dear?" With astonishment in the
young boy's voice, he answered, "I think it's Adam's underwear!"

[Guest]

APPRECIATE WHAT YOU HAVE - AND TROUBLES BECOME INSIGNIFICANT

You are standing on the 70th floor of the Empire State Building, gazing
at the cityscape. Suddenly a rather large man brusquely pushes past you,
wrenches the window open and announces his intention to jump.

You yell out: "Stop! Don't do it!"

The six-foot-five figure perched by the window turns to you and
menacingly says, "Try to stop me and I'll take you with me!"

"Umm... No problem, sir. Have a safe trip. Any last words?"

He says, "Let me tell you my troubles. My wife left me, my kids won't
talk to me, I lost my job and my pet turtle died. So why should I go on
living?"

Suddenly you have a flash of inspiration.

"Sir, close your eyes for a minute and imagine that you are blind. No
colors, no sights of children playing, no fields of flowers, no sunset. Now
imagine that suddenly there's a miracle. You open your eyes and your
vision is restored! Are you going to jump - or will you stick around for a
week to enjoy the sights?"

"I'll stay for a week."

"But what happened to all the troubles?"

"Ah, I guess they're not so bad. I can see!"

An eyeball is worth at least five million dollars. You have two of them?
You're rich.

If you really appreciate your eyesight, then the other miseries are
nothing.

Yet if you take it all for granted, then nothing in life will ever truly give
you joy.


http://www.aish.com/spirituality/foundations/The_Secret_of_Happiness.asp