Making laughing a haha-habit

People encounter at least 30 frustrations or mini-crises every day, most of which occur in the workplace, according to recent studies. There are in reality many stressors in this fast-paced, high-tech world we live in. Many people are consumed worrying about their families, loans, jobs, health, and their future as the world economies become uncertain. Any adverse reaction, such as tantrums to these situations, releases cortisone, adrenaline, and other chemicals that linger in our bodies for at least two hours after the outburst.

To help their employees stay relaxed, happy, and positive amid the demands and complexity of their jobs, Vina Carla Gonzaga of SC Johnson’s HR department requested for a Laughter Yoga at their office.

Competition for the hearts, minds, and yes, pockets of the consuming public has become increasingly fierce with the passing of time. To stay efficiently and profitably afloat, companies must keep themselves attuned to the ever-changing lifestyles and spending patterns of consumers. They cannot afford to rest on their laurels.

Demand for a Laughter Yoga session — the best, easiest, and fastest stress reliever in the workplace or anywhere else — has mercurially risen over time. Laughter Yoga helps us take life situations in stride, loosen up, and not take ourselves or others so seriously. To have some fun at work, by doing Laughter Yoga in between breaks!

If good mood is contagious, so is bad mood. To break the bad mood cycle, we need laughter. A mirthful laughter, a deep belly laughter that brings tears to the eyes is like doing a cardio workout that gives a “high” feeling through the release of endorphins, our bodies’ feel good hormones. Hence, during the LYoga session, I introduced “Argument Laughter,” whereby people can argue in cases of disagreements and conflicts, which are simply normal as we interact with people of various characters and attitudes … laughingly. Ha ha ha!

As in any argument or conflict, one party is always right. So we tackled the “I’m Sorry” Laughter. If one has committed a mistake or gotten into a hassle, he must take time to apologize sincerely — it can make the parties concerned feel better to bury the hatchet, move on, and start anew. 

These kinds of laughter and the others we did together elicited hearty and roaring laughter from the participants. Some breathing and stretching exercises were done in between, spiced up with many healthful trivia, making the awed participants enjoy the LYoga session to the hilt.          

Our lives are flooded with innumerable situations that give rise to irritability and stress. In Laughter Yoga, these challenging situations are called “free-floating hostilities” as they are scattered everywhere. Take a good look around you — traffic jams, rude and inconsiderate drivers, long queues in the supermarkets and in getting rides, flight delays, inefficient and inconsiderate employees, etc. These infuriating situations can change a person’s temperament and attitude. The best substitute for these hostilities is Laughter Yoga’s  “Ha Ha mantra.” Remember to say “haaaaaa,” “haaaaaa,” “haaaaaa” each time you find yourself in a sticky situation. It can help protect you from getting into a bad mood.

Laughter is infectious! It can even be much, much more when there are participants like Mario Iyog, who seems to have funny bones all over his body. He was a natural! He made the LYoga session even more hilarious with his many spontaneous funny antics and gestures.

Some inspiring comments from the participants:

• Stephen Norman Sy: Ha ha ha! Ms. Elvie was very good, and was able to capture and hold everyone’s attention. She did a fantastic job of making us laugh. Substantial one hour!

• Rachel Lu: Very helpful.

• Rachel Lee: Good muscle exercise.

• Mac Ramos: I learned new things to make myself laugh. Ha ha ha! This can be useful when you are feeling down.

• Grace Cemefrania: The Laughter Yoga session was fun and really relaxing.

• Celine Salazar: It was super fun. I learned new ways of exercising.

• Mario Iyog: Surprisingly, the execution is very simple (i.e. nothing technical) and yet the results are very effective. Kudos to Ms. Elvie! Here’s laughing at you! Ha ha ha!

Let’s keep laughing to a healthy, happy, positive us! Ho, ho, ha ha ha.

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 E-mail me at: laughteryogaclub.phils@gmail.comVisit www.laughteryogaphils.com. Want to laugh and relax? Visit youtube: lycphohohahaha!