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Laughter is the Best Medicine! Why and How to Laugh Confidently

By Michelle Marine

on Dec 07, 2015

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I created this post as part of a sponsored post for Socialstars and Poise. The opinions are all mine.#LadiesWithPoise

Sometimes when I’m caught up in the busyness of life, the last thing I want to do is laugh. But I have learned that laughter is the best medicine! There are a surprising number of reasons we should all strive to laugh more each and every day, and these benefits are wide reaching. When life gets me down, I want to be able to laugh with confidence, and here’s why.

Laughter is the Best Medicine – Surprising health benefits of laughter are mental, physical, and social!

Who knew it’s so good for you to laugh? I’m sure you’ve heard the saying – laughter is the best medicine, but here are the real, tangible benefits of something as simple as laughing.

• Laughter relaxes your whole body and helps you connect with other people.
• Laughter reduces stress hormones and helps reduce blood pressure.
• Laughter can protect against heart disease, according to a University of Maryland study.
• Laughter triggers the release of endorphins which can help with chronic pain.
• Laughter also helps boost your immune system – so laugh all day as we enter cold and flu season!
• And best news of all, 10-15 minutes of daily laughter burns up to 40 calories, according to a study at Vanderbilt University, AND it gives your abs a workout!! If I didn’t like any of the other benefits of laughter, I certainly like this one!

How to Incorporate More Laughter in Your Life

So if laughter is so good for us, why is it so hard for some people to laugh?! Perhaps, we adults take ourselves too seriously, or maybe we’re scared of what happens when we let go. I know that my kids laugh all the time and over the dumbest things, but for some reason, I’m sometimes not as excited about laughing.  When I slow down and actually watch my kids, I find all sorts of reasons to laugh – just like they do. Beyond watching kids, here are a few more ideas for incorporating laughter into your life.

1. Hang out with funny people
2. Host a game night with friends
3. Relax with a nice glass of wine or favorite drink
4. Go to a comedy show
5. Make silly faces with your kids – If you have kids, you’re probably guaranteed to have a live in comedy show at your house most every day!
6. Have a joke-a-thon with your husband or children. My husband and I love listening to Prairie Home Companion on NPR and our favorite episode is their yearly Joke Show. We even attended the live taping one year with our two month old daughter and we had a really good time.
7. Play with pets – or even just watch them. We watched our dog play with a hula hoop the other day and it was one of the most hysterical things I’ve seen a while. 😀
8. Watch a funny movie or TV show
9. Read a funny book or the comics or find a favorite funny blogger!
10.  Go to a yoga laughter class! I never even knew there was such a thing before but they sound like a lot of fun, don’t they?

Ladies, laugh with confidence and Poise.

But sometimes, women and especially mothers, can be a little hesitant to laugh because of light bladder leakage or LBL. I wrote about LBL when I turned 40 because it is a reality I have dealt with. While very common, LBL is not something we have to accept. If you experience LBL, take steps to improve it because it is correctable with exercise or physical therapy. Don’t let LBL keep you from doing things you want to do.

Luckily, until you are able to correct it, there are products on the market to help give you confidence to do the things you want to do, like laugh – such as the new Poise* Impressa* Bladder Supports.  Poise Impressa is the first over-the-counter internal product designed to help stop leaks before they happen. Poise Impressa Bladder Supports can help discreetly prevent leaks for up to 8 hours every day as they gently lift, or support, the urethra to help stop unexpected leaks. They’re available in three sizes that adapt to the unique internal shape of each woman’s body. While you’re working to alleviate your LBL, Poise Impressa can give you the confidence to attack daily life with gusto, enthusiasm, and humor!

Did you know laughter is the best medicine? How do you make sure to add laughter to your day? AND more importantly, how do you laugh withe confidence?