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The Healing Power of Laughter is Contagious

By Deborah J. Botti. Published by the Times Herald Record.

Link to the original newspaper article.

Metastasized cancer and a transplanted liver showing signs of rejection - how do you face these worries head-on?

With a healthy dose of laughter, of course.

Along with love and respect, the foundation of New Hampton residents Ralph and Jeanette Perretta's almost-28-year-marriage is charged with chuckles and bolstered by banter.

Their individual senses of humor paved the way not only for a successful marriage but also for a good 20 years of working together - barely 10 feet apart - in an insurance company's claims department, which is where they met.

Navigating rough waters

That 24/7, laced-with-lightheartedness connection is now a lifeline in rough waters.

Jeanette had an allergic reaction to an antibiotic six years ago, resulting in a liver transplant. A few months ago, there were signs of partial rejection, resulting in hospitalization in New York City.

"Right now I'm stable," she says.

The year before was marked by hospitalizations and treatments for Ralph, whose cancer returned.

"We're still always teasing, joking, laughing," says Jeanette. "It helps you take things more in stride."

Like when they had to go to the bank recently to update an account.

"We looked at each other, trying to figure out whose name should appear first because they'd be around longer," laughs Jeanette. "You have to have that attitude - even if you're talking about the post-passing brunch. 'Are you planning mine or yours?' "

"What we do is go back and forth," says Ralph.

"And then it ends up in laughter," says Jeanette. "Not that we don't have our moments ..."

They each recognize when a little space and quiet time are what the other needs. But soon that distance is bridged again with a smile.

"We'll get on a particular topic and use a sense of humor now to deal with everything," says Ralph of the realities they're facing. "It opens the door to candid discussions - without being overwhelmed or becoming maudlin."

"We joke about the urns - we'll give one to each kid," says Jeanette of their children, who are in their 20s. "We're a very close-knit family, and this is difficult for them, too. The running jokes just make it easier."

'A great antidote to stress'

Research and anecdotal evidence indicate that the Perrettas are clearly on the right track.

"As a doctor, you have two goals: to extend the life of the patient and make them healthy, and to make them feel better while they are alive. Laughter is a great antidote to stress and especially the stress that comes with being ill," says Dr. Stephen Lazar, a cardiologist at St. Luke's Cornwall Hospital.

The experts agree that laughter, like exercise, raises natural endorphin levels. At present, the research isn't conclusive as to whether it's just laughter or the influence of a positive attitude, good sense of humor and support of family and friends as well that make the difference.

"It's a fact, though, that stress hormones increase blood pressure, increase healing time and increase depression," says Dr. Jessica L. Caporuscio, an internist with Crystal Run Healthcare. "It's not a huge leap to believe that if you do the opposite and decrease stress hormones that there will be benefits. It certainly doesn't hurt."

Laughing yourself back to health

That's just what Norman Cousins, a writer and editor for the Saturday Review, was probably thinking back in the mid-'60s when he was diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis, a debilitating form of arthritis primarily affecting the spine. Because it was believed that stress could worsen his condition, he theorized that positive emotions could, therefore, improve his health.

According to various biographical materials, Cousins prescribed himself a steady dose of comedies, such as Marx Brothers films.

"I made the joyous discovery that 10 minutes of genuine belly laughter had an anesthetic effect and would give me at least two hours of pain-free sleep," said the person often referred to as the man who laughed himself back to health.

He battled heart disease, too, with a focus on laughter, and lived far longer - to the age of 75 - than his doctors anticipated. His memoir, "Anatomy of an Illness," a documentation of his informal research on himself, is credited with sparking the holistic health movement - and more research.

The results of a study at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in 2000, for example, found that people with heart disease were 40 percent less likely to laugh in a variety of situations compared to people of the same age without heart disease.

"I am not sure the research supports the idea that laughing will make you live longer, though I know there has been some done," says Lazar. "That said, I believe you'll be happier while you're alive if you spend more time laughing."

Workshops planned for patients

Laughter workshops are on tap for cancer patients and their families at the Littman Cancer Center at the Cornwall campus of St. Luke's Cornwall Hospital. Harriet Holman Touraine, a registered nurse and certified laughter leader who is also trained in reflexology and reiki, was responsible for the Laughter Club at the Newburgh campus through which she helped de-stress colleagues. The first laughter training will take place from 6-8 p.m. at the July 22 survivor support group.

"Having a good laugh with someone can relieve the burdens of everyday life, too," says Lazar. "That's why this program Harriet has started is terrific."

"I've always believed in laughter," says Touraine. "I'm in heaven because I found this program. Pretty much everyone can do it, and it works for children and the elderly alike."

Over at Glen Arden in Goshen, fitness instructor Elizabeth Connors has found her laughter program quite contagious.

Every month, she spends time focusing on a particular element of fitness - be it balance, nutrition or cardiac health. Her familiarity with laughter yoga and love of a good joke inspired the concept, a program that she plans to repeat in January to chase away the winter blues.

Connors did some research and asked the independent-living folks to bring in jokes. They told jokes. Connors put funny sayings in balloons that participants sat on to pop.

"It was a tremendous success," she says. And they laughed.

And the benefits continue ...

"Laughter conditions the abs," says Touraine.

Both facial muscles and core muscles are stretched. Pulse, blood pressure and respirations increase, sending more oxygen to tissues.

And even if laughter is not a panacea for all that ails, Caporuscio says it's a valuable tool for easing tensions in the office.

"I don't want people to be afraid to come to the doctor," says Caporuscio, who learned at an early age to laugh your way through things. Her father has a glass eye, and she recalls one of those memorable mirthful family moments laughing over a comic featuring Mr. Potato Head - without an eye.

"People hear us laughing all the time in the office and probably find themselves wondering what's going on," she says.

LOCAL LAUGHTER LEADERS PURSUING SERIOUS GOALS

For Bette Lee Meci, owner of AVC Hearing Aid Center in Middletown, it was an article in Parade magazine.

Registered nurse Harriet Holman Touraine of Mountainville learned about it online.

Both women's lives have been influenced in a big way by psychologist Steve Wilson and his "World Laughter Tour."

Meci and Touraine always understood the importance of laughter, but didn't know how to share it with others because, while laughter is universal, what makes people laugh certainly isn't.

"I always believed in laughter," says Touraine, "but I thought it only came from humor."

However, there are so many kinds of humor - some of which is toxic because it's at other people's expense, she explains.

"Then I found this," Touraine says. "It's so much better."

How 'laughter scenarios' work

Laughter Clubs worldwide are headed by certified laughter leaders trained under Wilson's program. They use methodical activity that blends ancient practices - such as yoga and meditation - and modern medicine.

"It takes a lot of planning and energy," says Meci, who has spent about seven years developing laughter for specific groups of all ages who invite her - from the Red Hat Society to the Dispute Resolution Center.

The "laughters" often involve acting out common scenarios using specific arm movements and "hee-hee" or "ha-ha" in place of words.

Airplane laughter, for example, goes through the motions of a flight attendant's safety instructions before takeoff, from tightening seat belts to putting on the oxygen masks.

"Everything is done with laughter," says Meci. "The 'ho-ho-ha-ha-ha' uses the diaphragm and encourages deep breathing."

In Mowing of the Lawn laughter, for example, everyone tries to get the electric mower to start, using laugh sounds while pulling the cord.

The Roller Coaster laugh is done while sitting, arms and legs raised.

"In Cocktail Party laughter," says Touraine, "imagine the insincere 'tee-hee-hees' as people move around the room shaking hands."

The leader demonstrates the sounds and movements associated with the laugh, and then the group joins in.

"Sure, people might feel a little awkward at first," says Touraine, "but they all end up laughing."

Meci remembers doing a session at a nursing home and noted a man who not only didn't participate, but also hardly smiled.

"At the end, people came up to me to thank me. He waited until the end. 'I missed a lot because I felt silly,' he told me," says Meci.

'I wanted to help my colleagues'

Before Touraine's recent transfer to the Littman Cancer Center at St. Luke's Cornwall Hospital's Cornwall campus, she worked in the emergency room in Newburgh.

"I wanted to help my colleagues with laughter," she says of the exercises she would bring from floor to floor.

As an adjunct to her new responsibilities, she will be bringing laughter therapy to cancer patients and their families.

And Meci shares a laugh that can be done at home called Graduated laughter. "Look serious and don't laugh," she says. "When this one is done in a group, everyone gets hysterical just trying to stay serious."

At home, this can be done in front of a mirror, while gradually pulling up the corners of the mouth into a smile.

"Then give permission to start to laugh," says Meci.

For more information, visit www.worldlaughtertour.com.

 

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Disclaimer: As a Health Coach, I will never attempt to diagnose, treat, make claims, prevent or cure any disease or condition. I advise my clients that Health Coaching is not intended to substitute for the advice, treatment and/or diagnosis of a qualified licensed health care professional.