Laughter is the Best Medicine
Written by Brenda Kennison
Unlike today’s youth, I didn’t grow up in an age of instant and on-demand entertainment. My generation watched our favorite television shows on a schedule (and on one household TV); Happy Days after school at 4 PM, Wonderful World of Disney Sunday evenings at 8 PM, you get the “picture.” Money was tight in my family so books were borrowed, not purchased, and I wore my library card paper thin.
One luxury we did have was a monthly subscription to “Reader’s Digest,” and I would wait in anticipation for its arrival every month. My favorite sections contained humorous anecdotes submitted by readers and compiled into monthly features titled, “Humor in Uniform,” “Life in these United States,” and “Laughter is the Best Medicine.”
My home didn’t bubble with laughter, instead there was often arguing and strife. I see now that this magazine was a beacon of hope and truly medicine to my aching soul. The stories found within gave me a reprieve from the worry, anger, and confusion that come from growing up in a household with poverty, mental illness, drug, and alcohol addiction.
But God. . .
Over the past decade God has shown me many times throughout my life that He was right beside me, even though I didn’t yet know Him as my Lord and Savior. Glimpses He gives me into my childhood and adolescence are precious reminders of His abounding love.
Since 2011 I’ve studied the scriptures and science behind renewing the mind. In Philippians 4:8, the Bible instructs us clearly:
Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
Why is this scripture so important? Thinking about the things that are true, just, pure, and of good report produce a chemical reaction in our bodies that creates a state of health and balance.
On the other hand, if you think on the negative, if you think on the problems, and if you think of every possible future problem that could be, the brain releases negative hormones and chemicals that cause our bodies harm.
We can go three weeks without food, three days without water, three minutes without air, but we can’t even go three seconds without thinking! Every thought WILL RELEASE a corresponding good or bad chemical reaction in our bodies.
That’s why “laughter is the best medicine!” The Bible says in Proverbs 17:22,
A merry heart doeth good like medicine; but a broken spirit drieth the bones.
The human body is an incredible and intricate machine, and God designed it with purposeful precision. The “chemical factory” of the brain, called the hypothalamus, can only produce one type of chemical at a time. How does it know which type of chemical to produce? It’s driven solely by our thinking. This is why we must be intentional in our thinking and learn how to take our thoughts captive and make them obedient to Christ. (Corinthians 10:5)
Thinking on the things that are true, just, pure, and of good report prompt the release of the brain’s “happy chemicals” – dopamine, serotonin, endorphins, and oxytocin, which contribute to positive behaviors and health.
With one good belly laugh you can:
Reduce pain (endorphins are natural painkillers that can help relieve discomfort)
Improve your mood (serotonin is a natural antidepressant and can help boost your mood and help you relax)
Reduce stress (laughter reduces levels of cortisol, the stress hormone)
Practical application:
Create a playlist of your favorite comedians that you can access easily and listen to when you feel stressed
Save reels from your favorite social sites to watch and conjure up a bowl full of immune bursting endorphins!
Save comedies to the watch list on all your favorite streaming platforms. Make these your go-tos instead of a horror flick or latest crime dramas.
Grab a Reader’s Digest and look for the gems I described in this post.
