Is Laughter really the best cure? Laughter is contagious and it makes you feel good. laughter causes people to feel excited and happy. Being happy triggers healthy physical changes in the body. Laughter and comedy have many benefits for your mental health, physical health, and quality of life.  A study in 2017, found clear and compelling evidence that happy people tend to live longer and experience better health than their unhappy peers. During these difficult times, many people have been experiencing a lot of stress. So, it is important to try and distract oneself from the reality of Covid-19. 

Laughter is contagious, when someone in the room starts laughing, others will presumably join in and laugh too. Laughter improves your daily mood and emotional state, which is good for your overall health. Laughing and being happy has also been proven to help people who are suffering from physical pain. Laughing during a humorous film elevates the pain threshold and can help break the cycle between pain, sleep loss, depression, and immunosuppression. Laughter lowers blood pressure, epinephrine, and glucose levels, and increases glucose tolerance. 

Laughter has also shown to improve your mental state. Humor makes your feel good, and it helps you maintain a positive and optimistic outlook in difficult situations. Even in the most difficult times, a laugh can go a long way towards feeling better. You can’t feel anxious, angry, or stressed when you’re laughing. It reduces stress and increases energy, enabling you to stay focused and accomplish more. 

During the Coronavirus pandemic, many people have been feeling very stressed. Here are a few suggestions in order to keep yourself happy and healthy:

1. Watch funny movies and tv shows – the best way to laugh is to sit and watch a comedic show. There are many great shows that are known to be extremely funny, here is a link to one of the many websites that rates TV shows on Netflix. undefined

1. Family game night- There are many trivia games (both offline and online) that can be very funny! Many of these games can be played with many players. So, having a family game night or a virtual game with friends can be very beneficial for your mental health. 

1. Listen to comedians – Many comedians have shows online and on apps like Spotify. Listening to these shows while cooking dinner, or in the background while working can be very funny and make you laugh a lot. 

“Happiness is a choice, not a result. Nothing will make you happy until you choose to be happy” – Ralph Marston. It is important to make the decision to be happy and to live life to its fullest. These are unique and hard times, but if we choose to be happy, you can have a better quality of life!