Laughter Yoga

Have you ever been stressed or overwhelmed? Just the other day, I was worrying about something completely insignificant - how was I going to get the house cleaned and start dinner before our company arrived? I had just gotten back from the grocery store and as I was unloading the groceries, I realized I had forgotten the most important ingredient for the meal – chicken. At that point, I started laughing.

A famous author once wrote, “Laughter is by definition healthy.” The Old Testament also states that, “Laughter is the best medicine.” In my case, laughing at myself calmed me down and decreased my anxiety.

Scientific studies have shown that laughter has both therapeutic and preventative health benefits. As you laugh, your body decreases cortisol (a stress hormone), lowers blood pressure, and improves circulation and respiration. It also releases endorphins and enhances alertness, memory and creativity. There is even evidence that frequent laughter can increase longevity and boost the immune system.

Last month, 15 Florida Hospital employees chuckled and giggled their way to lower stress levels and better health during the first ever Laughter Yoga session. Patricia Conklin, BS, from our Leadership Development department is a Certified Laughter Yoga Leader. The one-hour class combined simple laughter exercises with playfulness and yoga-style diaphragmatic (or “belly”) breathing techniques.

“Together, the laughter and yoga breathing help to flush stale air from the lungs and bring more oxygen to the body and brain,” Conklin said as she described the benefits to the Laughter Yoga.

Jane Mulberry, BS, RN is a nursing supervisor at Winter Park Memorial Hospital. She was one of the initial 15 participants said that, “The Laughter Yoga class was great fun! Now, some of the nurses and I laugh as we greet each other (just like we did in the class). I enjoyed the class so much that I’d like to see it incorporated in our diet on a regular basis because it would make some of the stress at work decrease. Laughter is powerful medicine—and something we all get too little of!”

The next Laughter Yoga class is taught February 1st and under the class description the requirement states: “No sense of humor required – only a willingness to laugh!”

If you would like to work for an organization that seeks to invest in their employees through innovative means, please visit http://www.floridahospitalcareers.com/.