Page 61 - Effective Communication Skills Mastery Bible 4 Books in 1 Boxset by Tuhovsky, Ian

reactions on us. Also, when we laugh often, people see us as

more friendly, nicer and happier.

3. Laughter is good for your health. Smiling positively

affects your breathing. When we laugh, we breathe faster, and

this is a great exercise for the diaphragm and throat. It also
increases the oxygenation of the blood and betters your blood

flow. According to neurologist Henri Rubinstein, one minute

of honest laughter equals 45 minutes of deep relaxation.

4. The hormone of happiness. Laughter stimulates the

secretion of endorphins, hormones in the brain. These are of
similar chemical composition to morphine and heroin, but they

calm and strengthen your immune system. The release of

endorphins greatly improves our well-being.

5. The mere act of smiling, even artificially, causes the

release of endorphins in the brain. Activity of the muscles
responsible for smiling is so strongly associated with our well-

being that it works both ways. So if you want to feel better in a

second, just smile a couple of times, even if you do not have

the desire to. Try it yourself, even now.

6. Social smile. Research shows that we laugh more often
when we’re in the company of other people rather than when

we are alone. Robert Provine says that only 15% of our

laughter comes from the amusement of jokes! There is wisdom

to that—so many times I barely smiled when reading a joke

alone at home, but when I heard the same joke while with a

group of people, I cried out loud with unstoppable laughter. It
turns out that laughter has an important social function; it’s the

way to forge relationships.