| Article Index |
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| Laughter Yoga Alleviates Depression |
| Laughter Yoga releases feel good hormones |
| Laughter Yoga enhances positive emotions |
| All Pages |
Depression is the number one disease today. It is a combination of symptoms that interfere with the ability to work, study, sleep, and eat. It is a disabling condition and can affect a person many times during their life. Depressed people seldom laugh, and laughing people are seldom depressed.
Laughter Yoga has helped thousands to overcome severe depression all over the world as it uses laughter in the form of physical exercise rather than using cognitive humor. This means that anyone can laugh, regardless of their state of mind and cognitive ability. So, even depressed people are able to laugh. It is not unusual for people who have suffered long-term depression to recover through laughter, even after years on anti-depressant medication.
How Laughter Yoga Alleviates depression
State of mind: The world is a reflection of our state of mind. The pessimistic state of mind common to depression makes our world a miserable place to be, full of unhappy relationships and pressures.
Laughter Yoga creates a positive state of mind. It fosters a positive and hopeful attitude with increased optimism. This makes the world seem a wonderful place full of fun and interesting people and great potential for achievement and happiness. In this state one is less likely to succumb to feelings of depression and helplessness.
Neurotransmitters: Depression is connected to an imbalance of hormones and neuropeptides in our bloodstream, especially those resulting from high levels of stress. Research shows that Laughter Yoga quickly reduces the levels of stress-related hormones and neuropeptides and replaces these with happiness-related hormones and neuropeptides.
Stress level: Often associated with high stress levels, depression-linked worry and negative emotions can further increase stress to dangerous levels. Laughter Yoga is a powerful remedy to counter the negative effects of stress. It elevates the mood state instantaneously and lifts the spirits which enables one to perform better and succeed in any field of work.
Physical effects of stress: Depression-linked stress switches off body systems not required for a ‘fight or flight’ response. These include the immune, digestive and sexual systems. Thus the chronic stress of depression causes one to lose interest in activities that bring pleasure, including sex and good food. The weakened immune system leaves one prone to illness and disease.
Laughter Yoga on the contrary has the opposite effect on the body. It switches on and boosts the immune, digestive and sexual systems thus restoring the pleasures of good food and sex and enabling the body to fight infections and disease.
