Yes! I want to take part in the stress relief training “Laughter and Dance Therapy”. Laughter therapy: examples of exercises. What are the benefits of laughter therapy for humans?

Each of us has heard at least once in our lives the stable expression - “ Laughter prolongs life" Some consider this belief to be a myth, while others actively practice laughter therapy. And for this it is not at all necessary to attend specialized courses and master classes: you can easily cope on your own, at home.

Fun therapy in the fight against illnesses

Laughter therapy, as you might guess from the name, is a treatment with positive emotions. Laughter really has a beneficial complex effect on your body: it relieves stress, heals depression, cleanses the airways, normalizes blood microcirculation, and strengthens the body’s immune functions.

It's no secret that there is a whole science about laughter, whose name is geotology. For many years now she has been proving specific examples that positive emotions can the best way influence the physiological state of a person.

Children's laughter is the purest, kindest and most sincere. A three-month newborn is already able to smile, and by the age of six months the baby cannot imagine his life without this “attribute” of joy. Small child can laugh up to 300 times a day! Perhaps it is this fact that allows the growing organism to develop correctly?

Over time, a person stops laughing so often, but shows this ability on average up to ten times a day. If this does not happen, various diseases begin to rapidly develop in the body. Women will also be very interested in the fact that full-fledged laughter therapy can replace expensive beauty salons and fitness clubs.

Today, laughter therapy is successfully practiced by leading psychologists in their prestigious clinics. It should be borne in mind that not all types of laughter are equally beneficial for your inner state. Can sinister, ironic or frightened laughter give you health? No. Therefore, today we will learn to laugh correctly and profitably.

Biological benefits of laughter

Renowned neurologist William Fry equated the act of laughter with breathing exercises, so common nowadays. According to him, the intensity of breathing allows the lungs and upper respiratory tract completely free of air.

At this moment, powerful biochemical reactions occur in the human body. You may not believe it, but a loud laugh can even normalize your metabolic processes!

Laughter therapy allows you to suppress the synthesis of the “stress hormone” - adrenaline, and the “death hormone” - cortisone. At the same time, endorphins begin to be actively produced. Healthy laughter can quickly relieve mental and physical pain, stabilize emotional condition, bring some pleasure.

Let's figure out why laughing is so useful? So, laughter provides your body with the following benefits:

• Elimination of negative and destructive programs;
• Enhanced production of endorphins – “ happiness hormones»;
• Normalization of peripheral circulation;
• Support of vitality and physical activity;
• Acceleration of metabolic processes;
• Activation of the central nervous system;
• Instant saturation with energy and vigor;
• Minimizing the level of bad cholesterol in the blood;
• Relief of headaches of unknown origin;
• Relaxation of 80 muscle groups, elimination of myalgia;
• Stimulation creative thinking and activity;
• Rapid development of self-confidence and willpower.

"Technology" of laughter

If you decide to delve deeper into the principle of laughter therapy and how to laugh correctly, we will be happy to tell you the techniques for this “fun” treatment. You can choose specialized courses for yourself with professionals or practice the technique at home yourself.

Training in a kind of laughter therapy can involve even the most banal things. Tell your friend jokes and let him tell you the same jokes. The funnier they are, the better.

Experts who run trainings claim that it is quite difficult to make a person laugh, especially if he came to class “out of spirit.”

It is not easy even for experienced instructors to cheer up a gloomy person who is in a bad mood. But we all know that saving drowning people is the work of the drowning people themselves. Start your own effective course of laughter therapy exercises by viewing a stand-up, comedy shows and films, monologues of your favorite comedian.

Most The best way start - start laughter therapy in a bad, tired and tense mood. In this case you are on by example You will be able to note the miraculous effect of positive emotions on your general condition.

It should be understood that, like all useful things, laughter therapy is good in moderation. Instructors take special care when treating particularly weakened people and patients with unstable mental state. After all, laughter is hard to both cause and stop. And for some people it can turn into natural hysteria, which obviously will not add health to their body.

What kind of activities can there be?

• Classical laughter therapy – carried out in large groups of up to 200 people or individually. Implies psychological training using comedy programs, films, performances;
• Yoga is an Indian technique that is based on the artificial induction of correct, uniform, light laughter. Often accompanied by classical exercises. Ends with special breathing exercises;
• Therapeutic clownery is an improvised comedy performances conducted by qualified doctors in front of their patients.

The training program typically includes the following activities:

• Training in comprehensive relaxation (both physical and spiritual);
• Laughter therapy (watching comedies, performances and improvisations with a “funny” twist);
• Breathing exercises (teaching correct, deep, healthy breathing);
• Dance movement therapy;
• Acting and gymnastic practices.

You should not assume that the whole point of laughter therapy lies in the banal viewing of a funny movie or television program. If this were so, no one would apply for trainings, because similar effects can be achieved by anyone who has a computer or TV at home.

Laughter therapy is a deep practice that is aimed not only at inducing joyful emotions, but also at holding them within oneself, working on one’s own thinking, perception and mental state.

You should seek laughter therapy in the following cases:

• You feel a clear lack of positive emotions in your life; they have been replaced by constant stress and overwork;
• You are ready to work on yourself and your attitude, you know for sure that happiness is internal state, And spiritual harmony a happy person cannot be disturbed by any turmoil;
• You understand that all your main problems lie in the lack of positive impressions and healthy emotions;
• You are ready to free your body and head from the burden of sorrows, anxieties and grievances;
• You want to change yourself and your life for the better;
• Are you looking for a non-trivial way to recover from chronic diseases, ensure your health and longevity;
• You are not shy about doing “stupid things”, dancing, improvising and laughing in the company of strangers;
• You dream of gaining self-confidence and developing existing talents.

Laughter prolongs life - it's not easy beautiful phrase . A good mood, joy and fun helps to cope with any ailment, many psychologists and doctors are sure alternative medicine, and traditional too. So let’s take a little look at how the laughter therapy method works.

Norman Cousins ​​- the man cured by laughter

Known to history amazing case happened to an American Norman Cousins, who got rid of an incurable disease using laughter therapy, from a medical point of view, a disease that in a short period of time took away his ability to move. Last days Norman decided to spend his life as fun and happy as possible. After being discharged from the hospital, I began reading funny, humorous books and watching comedies - and noticed that Hours of laughter acts as an anesthesia for unbearable pain.. Over time, his general health improved markedly, and after a few months of “fun” life, he recovered! In 1979, Cousins ​​wrote the book Anatomy of an Illness, which later became a bestseller.

Laughter therapy is a great cure for stress. Any emotional or physical stress needs to be released, and laughter does this simply unsurpassed. Psychologists recommend venting your aggression and fatigue by, for example, beating a pillow or crying, and this is correct. But, you see, it’s much more pleasant to relieve the burden from the soul with the help of laughter. It is no wonder that fun can overcome illnesses such as ulcers, asthma, colitis, which usually arise due to... Laughter also heals depression, bronchial, pulmonary and cardiovascular diseases, and heals nerves. Laughter therapy is designed to help people stay cheerful, accept right decisions and survive in the most difficult situations:

What happens when a person laughs (benefits of laughter):

- Pulse increases to one hundred and twenty beats per minute;
- The blood in our brain vessels cools, which greatly contributes to greater sanity and prudence;
- Work is stimulated, which, as we know, is responsible for the flight of creative and creative thoughts;
- Qualitatively dulls the production of “stress” hormones: adrenaline and cortosine, which, in turn, increases protective functions body;
- Laughter affects the body in the same positive and irreplaceable way as the “invaluable” vitamin C.

And now some tips:

I understand that some of this will sound stupid and wild to some, but such is the “price of health,” called laughter therapy. Try to introduce all these points as gently as possible into your life and into today’s realities, or somehow modernize them, so as not to cause too many “exclamation marks” and amazement from others. And in the end, what is important to us is the result, health and good mood, and not how we look in the eyes of others. Believe me, even without this they will find something to reproach or discuss us for. But be careful not to overdo it. In general, the most important thing is to always maintain the line between adequacy and reasonableness.

Laughter therapy exercises

1. When you wake up in the morning, go to the mirror and smile at the reflection. A smile is a kind of gymnastics session for the face, because during laughter, 17 muscles are involved, which helps to tone them and improve blood circulation. All this has a good effect on the condition of the skin.
In addition, as you may have already heard, a smile, as well as any indignation, is very contagious. And like this in a simple way you can infect yourself with positive and cheerful mood, which has a powerful healing effect.
And yet, as I have repeatedly mentioned this on the pages of this blog, playing a certain role, ours over time begins to perceive it as the real essence of a person and will make sure that both the functions of the body, and all other conscious/subconscious processes, and character, and the person himself corresponded to this essence.

2. Walking down the street, smile at passers-by, within reason, of course. If, nevertheless, it seems to someone that something is wrong with you, it doesn’t matter. You know why you need all this and that with every smile you only become healthier. Plus, it's very, very fun! And also, according to psychologists, this is much more conducive to communication than seriousness and “correctness.”

3. At work, smile too, encourage your colleagues, joke at appropriate moments, . As it is sung in famous song: “After all, a smile is the flag of a ship.” Let everyone know that you are in a great mood today.

4. If not very pleasant things happen, try to treat them with humor - after all, no one is immune from this.

5. If the work day has been hard and you are close to stress, you can use a very effective exercise- humorous. It is simple, like everything ingenious: you just need to be alone, breathe and laugh. Just be careful so that you don’t get caught doing this “secret” activity :-)

6. Try to pay more attention to the positive and comic aspects of life. Even better, write down in a notebook everything that is positive and fun that happens to you during the day. At the end of the week you can also re-read it. By doing this, you will learn not only to ignore the negative and see only the good in many ways, but also learn to be more resistant to stress, reorganize your thinking to be positive, creative and constructive, and you will also begin to suck everything good and cheerful into your life like a magnet.

7. No time to do fitness? Laugh! At the same time, the heart rate increases, the level of cholesterol in the blood decreases, and the endocrine glands produce substances that relieve headaches. One minute of laughter therapy can be equivalent to twenty-five minutes of aerobics.

Visual Fact About Laughter Therapy Treatment

Chelyabinsk doctor puts his patients on their feet in a unique way- jokes and pantomime. Andrey Skutin, that’s exactly his name amazing person, proved that after laughter therapy sessions, every cell of the body becomes like new. Laughter, according to his statements, cures many diseases, for example, the well-known cold. Laughter destroys external infectious microorganisms and antibodies. “Just ten minutes of fun reduces blood pressure. Headaches seem to go away, the composition of the blood improves, the immune system is strengthened, asthma attacks are reduced, and sleep becomes like that of a baby,” says the doctor. The course of his treatment contains ten sessions of one hour each. From the very beginning, patients are taught to breathe correctly while laughing, then to “put on” a sincere smile on their face, at the third stage - to grimace and show pantomimes without embarrassment and constraint, and at the fourth stage, final stage- listen and tell jokes. Laughter therapy is gradually conquering all countries of the world. It is already practiced both in prestigious clinics and by traditional healers. Laughter therapy is especially popular in Japanese clinics. And in Germany there are clown doctors who come directly to patients’ rooms. Indian healers also included their repertoire - they created yoga based on laughter.

We have already discussed in the previous article what principles laughter therapy is based on. And today we will learn how to heal with its help.

Almost all human problems arise from internal tension, which accumulates gradually throughout life. These problems manifest themselves both at the physiological and mental levels. Accumulated tension interferes with the normal circulation of a person’s vital energy. And for human health it is very important to freely receive energy in the right amount and give it away just as freely. Accordingly, in order to feel happy, a person must, first of all, get rid of the “pressures” accumulated since childhood.

The lightest and effective method to do such a “cleaning” - laugh. If not all internal tensions go away, then most of them will definitely disappear. Thus laughter therapy was born. Treatment with laughter therapy is not just fun and not only laughter.

This is a series of events harmoniously merged into a single program:

* yoga - a series of simple exercises where the emphasis is on the spine, its development and alignment, as well as relieving tension from all muscles of the body;

* stabilization of the psyche and nerves through special breathing exercises;

* achieving internal calmness in order to relax as much as possible and feel true peace.

Laughter therapy. Results:

Specialists involved in laughter therapy say that the most difficult thing is to make a person laugh. Comedians on cassette tapes, various comedy videos and audio recordings are called to help; the atmosphere is matched by clothing and surroundings. True, if a person is serious enough Bad mood, then even experienced laughter therapy instructors fail to make him laugh.
You have to work with such people separately or work with them in small groups (laughter therapy is practiced in rooms of two hundred people!). Weak people also require special attention. After all, laughter is both difficult to kindle and stop. Sometimes the laughter turns simply hysterical. For some sick or severely weakened people, this can turn into a disaster. Therefore, only individual lessons are conducted with such people.

Any regular laughter yoga session lasts 30 minutes. Its cost is up to 15 dollars. I will introduce you to some exercises, and you can practice laughter therapy on your own and for free. At least three people must be present at the lesson.

And so we begin:

1. Deep breathing exercise

Sit comfortably and close your eyes. Then inhale deeply and exhale slowly. Breathe through your nose. Fill your stomach with air first, then your chest. Fill all sections of the lungs: first the lower ones, then the upper ones. After inhaling, exhale completely and deeply. The air must first come out of the lungs, then from the stomach until there is no air left in the body at all. Imagine that when you inhale, it flows into your body Vital energy, and when you exhale, negative energy leaves you.

2. Stretching exercises

* Starting position standing. Step your right foot far forward and bend your knee. Keep your left leg straight. Try to squat down as deeply as possible so that the knee of your left leg almost touches the floor. Fix the pose. Turn around and repeat the same exercise for your left leg. This is a great exercise for the legs and pelvis.

* Starting position, sitting on the floor, legs straight. Bringing your legs together, make a springy bend forward. The exercise is very beneficial for the muscles of the back and legs.

* Starting position, lying on your back. Bend your right leg at the knee and pull it towards your chest with your hands. Hold the pose. Do the same exercise for your left leg. Then pull both knees together toward your chest and roll back until your knees touch your forehead. This exercise develops the biceps femoris muscle as well as the spine.

* Starting position, sitting on a chair. Turn back and grab the back of the chair with your hands. At the same time, do not lift your legs off the floor and your buttocks from the seat. Fix the pose. Then turn the other way. The exercise is very good for the muscles of the spine, back, shoulders and neck.

Chanting exercises

1. Do a series of simple exercises (your imagination), which include chanting “ho, ho, ha, ha,” moving around the room, making eye contact.

2. Exercise “laughing on the phone”: each participant pretends to speak on the phone mobile phone, and then, having established eye contact with each other, chant their “ho, ho, ha, ha.”

3. Exercise “vengeful laughter”: all participants index fingers They threaten each other, shouting “ha.”

4. Exercise “why am I laughing”: participants put their hands on their hips, look at others and ask: “Why me? Ha, ha, ha.”

We perform each chanting exercise for 1–2 minutes. Then we do deep breathing and stretching exercises, and then move on to the next exercise. Combination deep breathing, stretching and chanting “ho, ho, ha, ha” perfectly stimulates, activates the diaphragm, lung muscles and abdomen. You can invent your own exercises. The main thing is that it is funny and useful. Being in extraordinary, stupid positions and having others in them quickly causes contagious, real laughter. The only rule in this case: we laugh with each other, and not at each other.

The most fun type of psychotherapeutic treatment is certainly laughter therapy.

We first learned about this method from Norman Cousins, who overcame a serious illness with sincere laughter while watching the best comedies. EIf you don’t know who Cousins ​​is and what happens to the body when a person laughs, be sure to read the previous article in the section - laughter therapy.

Since then, the amazing possibilities of laughter have been studied by many medical scientists and various theories about our emotions began to appear.

Two opposing theories of laughter

For example, Cousins ​​and his followers believed that in order to laugh you need to see or hear something funny.

But two doctors, professors, psychologists who lived in different countries, (William James in America, and Carl Lange in Denmark) at the end of the 19th century almost simultaneously came to the same conclusions. In a nutshell:

Everyone believed that a person can laugh only when he is having fun, but according to the James-Lange theory, a person becomes happy because he laughs.

You can test this theory for yourself. Even if you are in a bad mood and even tearful, try to remember something funny and laugh. Even if this laughter is artificial and not sincere. But gradually laughter becomes easier and more contagious, and your mood will improve significantly.

We know about the power of thoughts and emotions, right? This means, without any doubt, we can control not only our emotions, but also what surrounds us. Smile at the world, at a flower, at a swallow, at a random passer-by - and you will see that people around you are becoming more and more friendly and joyful. And you begin to feel happier and more cheerful.

But if you look at everyone gloomily and sadly, then the world will frown and get angry. And your mood will fall catastrophically.

What is the best way to practice laughter therapy?

You can use already known exercises, but soon you will want to come up with exercises yourself that will make you laugh.

Exercises for home laughter therapy

♦ Try the simplest one. When you wake up, but without opening your eyes yet, smile at yourself and wish good morning, health and good luck. Make it a habit.

♦ Smile at everyone you interact with: at home, at work, while walking – everywhere. Just smile sincerely, you don’t need to put on the “American” smile on duty. Only a smile from the heart is returned by the smiles of the people around you.

♦ In your busy schedule, find regular time (even if it's just a few minutes) to laugh. Just start laughing. This may seem ridiculous at first - laugh at the absurdity. With every minute the laughter will be more and more captivating. Remember how in childhood we laughed at seemingly completely ordinary things. We couldn't stop. Adults used to say: “If you show your little finger, you’re already laughing.”

♦ Of course, it’s more fun and enjoyable to laugh in a group. But the team can even consist of 2 people! Find a friend, relative, just a neighbor with whom you can just laugh.

We develop the main energy centers

There are 3 main energy centers in our body. It turns out that depending on how we laugh, what syllable we pronounce when laughing, one of these centers begins to become active and develop.

1. Try laughing while saying ha ha ha! You can do it in short portions, 2-3 syllables each, or you can do it in longer ones. Listen to the sensations in your body. Did you feel it? With every “ha”, the abdominal muscles and diaphragm actively work! Laughing “ha-ha” opens the lower energy center and, in addition, perfectly trains the diaphragm and strengthens the abdominal muscles.
2. Calm down and get ready for a new experience. We change the syllable “ha” to “ho”. All attention to the sensations... “Ho-ho-ho” works with the middle energy center. And this is the heart, the center of our “I,” the soul is the emotional center.
3. And the third syllable with which we will laugh is “hee”. Giggle, just not quietly into your fist, but loudly, from the bottom of your heart. Notice where that giggle gurgles? That's right, just in the upper energy center - in the throat and brain. And this is our communication center: our ability to communicate, learn, convey our experience, express our feelings.

You can laugh while sitting, lying down, standing - in each position additional muscles will be involved in the work. One an indispensable condition– the back should be straight, because there are 2 main energy channels along the spine. And laughter is a huge energy!

♦ A very interesting exercise is growing laughter. Start laughing quietly, as if holding yourself back. Then - louder, holding back so as not to disturb others. And finally, unrestrainedly, from the heart.

Look at the video to see how such growing, contagious laughter works: just one person “infected” an entire carriage of passengers with laughter in a matter of minutes.

The positive effect of laughter on physiology was described by Hippocrates, and in the 1970s the science of laughter, geotology, appeared in America. Her research has shown that laughter is very beneficial for a person's psychological and physical health.

Health benefits of laughter

Numerous studies have shown that cheerful people who smile often are much less likely to suffer from various diseases than gloomy people. Laughter is an effective medicine and means of preventing disease.

Good for the heart

Depressed mood, stress, irritation, depression and other negative human conditions contribute to damage to the cells responsible for local blood flow. As a result, the vessels become weak and less elastic. Cholesterol levels increase in the body. A person's likelihood of developing cardiovascular diseases increases. Among gloomy people, diseases such as atherosclerosis and myocardial infarction are especially common.

According to the science of geotology, cheerful and cheerful people are 2 times less likely to suffer from heart problems.

Normalizes blood pressure

Laughter therapy will be very useful for both hypertensive and hypotensive patients. For example, for the former, laughter lasting only 10 minutes can reduce blood pressure by 10-22 mm, while for the latter, impotence and dizziness go away.

Acts as a pain reliever

Interestingly, the sounds “ha” and “ho” were used many years ago to expel negative energy - the energy of disease.

Last 3 minutes without smiling :)

5. Listen to cheerful, invigorating music in the morning. Avoid watching news, thrillers and horror films. Watch humorous videos and comedies. Go to funny performances and exhibitions. Read funny stories.

6. Make fun friends and acquaintances. Avoid communicating with pessimists, gloomy and gloomy people.

Like these ones simple exercises Laughter training will help you make your life brighter and more fun. Go through life laughing! ;)

Contagious laughter of a child :) :) :)