What Price Joy?

Does it seem out of place to talk about joy when we are in the middle of an international emergency due to the COVD19 pandemic? There have been tens of thousands of deaths right across the globe, and each person is someone’s spouse, brother, sister, grandparent, mother, father, son or daughter. Whilst scientists search for a vaccine to neutralise coronavirus, I suggest that we are in much need of an injection of joy and hope – like that given by Captain (now Coronal) Tom Moore in raising more than £30 million for the NHS.

Solomon, thousands of years ago, said, “a joyful heart is good medicine”. Modern medical science has been investigating the benefits of joy and the energising effects of laughter for only the past 30 years. Their research has uncovered many stories of people intentionally keeping their spirits up when confronted by stressful situations.Victor Frankl, a concentration camp survivor, said, “Humour, more than anything else in the human make-up, affords an aloofness and an ability to rise above any situation, even if only for a few seconds”.

Joy has an impact on surviving extreme and uncertain times. Jesus had joy above and beyond his companions. Paul said that the kingdom of God comprises righteousness, peace and joy. That makes it a one third part of God’s kingdom. So joy is very significant, even to God! We need more of that in this time of stress and uncertainty.

Here are 4-ways that science proves that laughter is good medicine:

First, laughter does the same thing as a workout: It gets your lungs breathing more deeply and your hearts pumping faster. Also, many of our muscles are engaged, improving circulation and blood pressure.

Second, laughter activates our immune system, improving our defence to disease. Studies have also shown that laughter increases our natural defences to cancer, viruses and upper respiratory problems.

Third, laughter relaxes our bodies and stops our brains from producing stress hormones. In 2005, doctors from the University of Maryland medical Centre stated that laughter is some of the “best medicine” for protecting us from heart disease, a leading form of death in both USA and UK. It apparently prevents stress from deteriorating the lining of our blood vessels.

Fourth, laughter is a vital ingredient for creating and sustaining mental and emotional health. The stresses we experience give rise to negative emotions such as fear, grief and anger. These need to be processed through cathartic releases like laughing, crying and shouting; otherwise they make us toxic in body and mind. Emotionally and mentally laughter defuses negative thoughts and emotions, producing instead positive emotions like hope and elation. These give us the opportunity to create new, more optimistic perspectives on our circumstances.

Laughter is an act of moving in the “opposite spirit” to the circumstances we face. It can become a skill by which people cope with stress and stay healthy. It is also a key component of Emotional Intelligence (EQ).

[ I am indebted to an Internet article by Kris Vallotton, Bethel, Reading, CA, dated 17 April 2020 for information used in this blog ]

Doctor image by: Abhilash Jacob from Pixabay