Laugh Therapy

We went to the oncologist on Monday and she said the median life expectancy for someone with my mother’s stage of lung cancer is 12-18 months.  I told my mom that only the good die young and since she’s ornery as hell she’ll make it another 10 years.  She laughed.

So in addition to traditional treatment and clean eating, we are also going to do laugh therapy.  Comic relief works for every day life stresses too.  According to the Mayo Clinic (MayoClinic – Stress Management)  there are actual physical benefits to laughter including:

• Stress Relief by lowering your natural stress response, and increasing oxygen flow throughout your body
• Boosting your Immunity by releasing neuropeptides
• Relieving Pain by and releasing endorphins in your brain

Some places like The Cancer Treatment Centers of America offer actual classes in laughter: (Laughter Therapy) and note that surgeons have been using humor since the 13th century to distract patients from pain.  (‘Cause I guess when you have the Bubonic Plague what else can you do but laugh, right?)

So we have been watching shows like “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” and the sitcom “Mom” and the “Best of SNL”.  My kids, Rylee and Henry, have also been providing a lot of comic relief.

How about you?  What shows or movies make you laugh?

Lisa 

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