3 seconds to better health

Stress…we all have it, and for a multitude of different reasons.

Stress…we all know we have it, but don’t know how to reduce it.

Stress…it can make you sick and lead to health problems like:

• depression
• diabetes
• hair loss
• heart disease
• hyperthyroidism
• obesity
• obsessive-compulsive or anxiety disorder
• sexual dysfunction
• tooth and gum disease
• ulcers
• cancer

So what can I do in 3 seconds?

Laughter and smiling is a simple and easy way to reduce stress and may lead to an increased immune response that can help combat these illnesses.

A 4 year old smiles 400 times a day while an average adult smiles 14.  Kids just find reasons to smile and laugh.  It can be as easy as catching a chicken:

If this video made you smile, you are:

• using 14 facial muscles
• sending a message to your brain that says “everything is OK”
• sending a message to those around you that you are approachable improving your personal interactions
• reducing your stress response

If it made you laugh, you are:

• exercising your lungs, chests and blood pressure
• releasing chemicals in your brain which improve you mood
• improving your immune system, when done regularly
• reducing your stress response

And it doesn’t matter if you really have something to smile about or you force the smile.

I actually tried this method of stress relief during some times when I was in pain.

When I was in labor with my daughter, I labored at home for about 6 hours.  I had read an article that said if you force yourself to smile, you won’t feel pain as severe and it will help you to relax.  While working through the contractions, I forced myself to smile while I did controlled breathing.  I have to say, it really helped.  I actually labored so hard at home, that I gave birth 15 minutes after the drive to the hospital.

I also used this technique during several painful medical procedures and it definitely helped.  (it also threw the doctor off completely….”OK Susan, this is going to hurt a bit.” “Great doc!” I would say with a smile.  I couldn’t help thinking of the scene with Bill Murray in “Little Shop of Horrors” where he is the sadistic dental patient smiling as Steve Martin drills away…)

Take count of how many times you smile tomorrow……

Increasing your “smile time” may just decrease your “sick time”.

Resources:

UMM laughter and heat attacks

Georgia Psychological Association

The video is from a blog called “Dance While You Cook”, a great resource for recipes for people who want to eat gluten and dairy-free.