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One of the best feelings in the world is a good laugh. Yet many of us do not avail ourselves to this free pleasure as often as we can. The health value of laughter has been well-documented. Laughter boosts the immune system and thereby helps the body’s ability to fight infections and tumors. Laughter causes stress hormones to plummet. Laughter enhances the flow of blood and may therefore speed healing, reduce inflammation, stimulate alertness. William Fry a psychiatrist wrote that laughing a 100 times a day is like doing 10 minutes of rowing. Laughter has been referred to as “internal jogging.”
 
In our culture where sex is used to sell everything, an advertisement for a book entitled, “Jokes: Their Meaning and Purpose,” stated, “Inducing a laugh is like inducing an orgasm in the listener.” So there you have it. When you laugh you have medicine, exercise, and sex all rolled into one, and there is no fear of overdoing it or catching a disease. Whereas the reality of sexually transmitted diseases cannot be denied, “laughter-transmitted diseases” are unknown, although it has been said that laughter is contagious.     
 
If you are still not convinced of the health value of laughter look at some of the famous comedians with whom we grew up: 
·         George Burns (“Retirement at 65 is ridiculous. When I was 65 I still had pimples”) lived to be 100.
·         Bob Hope (“You know you are getting old when the candles cost more than the cake.”) lived to be 100.
·         Milton Berle (“I feel like Zsa Zsa Gabor's sixth husband. I know what I'm supposed to do, but I don't know how to make it interesting.”) died at the age of 92.
·         Groucho Marx (“I’d never belong to a club that would have me as a member.”)died a few months shy of 87.
·         and Henny Youngman (“I just got back from a pleasure trip: I took my mother-in-law to the airport.”) died at the age of 92.
 
The purpose of a healthy sense of humor is not to laugh at someone else’s expense. That is the way of the coward. We can reap the ultimate rewards of humor when we have the courage to laugh at our own frailties. Once we learn to laugh at ourselves, we no longer need to be perfect. Let’s face it: The need to be perfect is sooooooo draining. 
 
Although humor might help us feel better, it cannot change the situations in our life that cause us physical and emotional pain; however, humor does give us the ability to view our circumstances from a different perspective and thereby minimize our suffering. It gives us power in a situation in which we would otherwise be powerless and it can help us transcend our situation by helping us gain a new point of view.
 
The importance of seeing an issue from a different point of view is best illustrated in a famous joke called “Mother-in-Law Relativity.” It is the story of two mothers meeting and comparing notes on their children’s marriage:
 
“Hello, Mrs. Schwartz. How is your daughter Shirley?”
 
“She’s fine. What a wonderful husband she has. He doesn’t let her put her hand in cold water all day. She lies in bed until 12:00 o’clock. Then her maid serves her breakfast in bed. At 3:00 she goes shopping in Lord and Taylor. At 5:00 she has cocktails at Tavern on the Green. And she dresses like a movie star.   Is this Luck!!!!!    And how is your son?”
 
“Well he’s married, but he has no such luck. He’s married to one of those fancy-shmancy girls. What do you think she does all day long? Nothing. She sleeps until noon. Then she has to have her breakfast brought to her in bed. And do you think she takes care of her home? No, she shops all afternoon---spends his hard earned money to dress like a movie star.   And how does she end up her day? Guzzling cocktails-----some wife!!!!”
 
How can humor help us?   People are under the misconception that everything has to perfect in the world. Be prepared for things to go wrong. We should not expect ourselves to be perfect nor is it realistic to expect things in everyday life to go smoothly. Did you ever notice when something goes wrong we curse, scream, become very upset, but when we tell about the experience later on, we often laugh and enjoy telling the story. Why is that? There must be something funny in the story but we are missing it at the time it is happening.
 
Keep your eyes open for humor in unlikely places. The doctor’s office can be intimidating, frightening, and overwhelming especially when we are there to find the reason for a potentially dangerous symptom. Yet, how many times are you greeted by the receptionist with a cheerful “Hello, how are you?”  I always think to myself, “What kind of question is that? I am in the doctor’s office. Oh yeah, I am here to discuss my golf game with the doctor.”
 
Try to see the humorous irony that often manifests itself in everyday life. Did you know that Charlie Chaplin once entered a “Charlie Chaplin Look Alike Contest” and came in third?!!!
 
Try to stop worrying about silly things. Leo Buscalia, an educator once wrote that 95% of the things we worry about never happen. Unfortunately, the only people who really believe this in their heart are those who own insurance companies. And that is why they are so wealthy.
 
When you see a funny comic or joke cut it out and put it in a “Humor Scrapbook.” Share your joke/ comic collection with friends or re-read your scrapbook when you need a good laugh.
 
Research has shown that even the act of smiling can help improve our mood. Rabbi Nachman of Breslov may have already known this over two hundred years ago when he wrote, “If you have nothing to smile about, put a smile on your face, and God will give you every reason to smile.”
 
In the words of Mother Theresa: “Smile at each other, smile at your wife, smile at your husband, smile at your children, smile at each other -- it doesn't matter who it is -- and that will help you to grow up in greater love for each other.”
 
But remember what George Carlin said:   “If a man smiles all the time, he’s probably selling something that doesn’t work.”
 
 
Dr. Joel Verstaendig is available for public speaking engagements. His presentations are entertaining as well as educational. For information e-mail him at DrJoelV@aol.com or call him at 516-933-6196.