When Contentment Feels More Natural than Sadness and Fear

This is what I’m starting to discover about developing a habit of laughing for no reason, regarding arguments with those I love: Contentment feels like a more natural emotional state for us than fear and sadness.

Laughter helps me be more quick to forgive and forget and start giggling again. I’m not such an expert at laughing at nothing that I can laugh in the middle of a painful argument, nor do I think that would be appropriate. But the increasing ability to “bounce back” after an argument is surprising me.

If I can remember to capitalize on the fun times, to laugh as much as possible when I do feel like it — then my sad and fearful times seem less overwhelming and don’t last as long. 

May joy, healing and forgiveness flow in and from our relationships.

Ego-less Healing

Sometimes the pure simplicity of laughter yoga throws our egos for a loop. It seems too easy.

In Hatha Yoga, for example, there are postures to master, which usually takes quite a bit of falling over, tense muscles, hopping around on one foot, and confused breathing. Eventually, with enough practice, our minds let go, and we “get it”. “I stuck with this difficult exercise and I’ve finally mastered it.” And this does feel good – it is certainly an accomplishment to be respected.

Laughter yoga, as a method, completely circumvents the left brain. It’s hard, almost impossible, to laugh and think at the same time. Your laughter does the transformative work for you. Instead of practicing for months, you can “master” laughter yoga within a session. The relaxing, healing results are tangible and immediate. 

In laughter yoga, your ego can only take credit for being vulnerable enough to step aside. That’s actually surprisingly uncomfortable. Our egos love to transform our egos. We want to work at it. Earn our transformation. Be more enlightened due to hours of study and silent meditation. But laugh? Isn’t that just another new age trend?  

Haysa (Laughter) Yoga is an ancient-age practice that dates back a few thousand years – it started in India. Laughter began… well… when we did. Laughter yoga heals and transforms on many levels that I’m sure we haven’t recognized yet. Laughter and breathing are parts of our life-force, our BE-ing. We laugh before we talk. Even deaf, blind babies laugh. They don’t need a reason. We can tell babies jokes all day. They don’t get the jokes, but they still laugh.

There are a few clips of babies laughing on the paparazzi page on this site. Watching them always helps me laugh, and reminds me that I still have my ego-free, organic, original laugh. It took me a while to find it, but it’s there.

Where is your original laugh? Have you heard it recently? You can start to find it again by practicing Laughter yoga – whether alone, with a laughter club, and/or at a conference. It would be my honor to help you find your original laugh and laugh it back into your life. It will likely bring healing you may not realize is missing.

laughlovepeace,
Leigh