Do you realize that the only time in our lives when we  like to get old is when we’re kids? If you’re less than 10 years old, you’re  so excited about aging that you think in fractions.

“How old are you?”  ”I’m four and a half!” You’re never thirty-six and a half. You’re four and a  half, going on five! That’s the key.

You get into your teens, now they  can’t hold you back. You jump to the next number, or even a few ahead.

“How old are you?” “I’m gonna be 16!” You could be 13, but hey, you’re  gonna be 16! And then the greatest day of your life . . . you become 21. Even  the words sound like a ceremony . YOU BECOME 21. YESSSS!!!

But then  you turn 30. Oooohh, what happened there? Makes you sound like bad milk! He  TURNED; we had to throw him out. There’s no fun now, you’re Just a  sour-dumpling. What’s wrong? What’s changed?

You BECOME 21, you TURN  30, then you’re PUSHING 40. Whoa! Put on the brakes, it’s all slipping away.  Before you know it, you REACH 50

and your dreams are gone.

But  wait!!! You MAKE it to 60. You didn’t think you would!

So you BECOME  21, TURN 30, PUSH 40, REACH 50 and MAKE it to 60.

You’ve built up so  much speed that you HIT 70! After that it’s a day-by-day thing; you HIT  Wednesday!

You get into your 80s and every day is a complete cycle;  you HIT lunch; you TURN 4:30; you REACH bedtime And it doesn’t end there. Into  the 90s, you start going backwards; “I Was JUST 92.”

Then a strange  thing happens. If you make it over 100, you become a little kid again. “I’m  100 and a half!”

May you all make it to a healthy 100 and a  half!!

Some questions to ask yourself….

Do I look for the humor in every day life?

Am I ‘fun’ to be with?

Am I happy and smile and laugh frequently?

Do I hang out with happy people?

…..Like attracts Like….
So if you want to be happy……hang out with happy people…

1. Stress is the major workplace injury of the 21st century - fun at work has been proven to boost productivity, co-operation, creativity and wellness.
2. It is much easier to keep on working than to take time off to relax and go to a seminar on stress - it takes self discipline to do this.
3. You don’t have to be a victim of stress - there is always something you can do, but the answers are not always obvious.
4. When you can’t change what’s making you stressed, you must change you - you can learn how to change your outlook.
5. Laughter is the best stress buster of all.  There are UNIQUE TECHNIQUES that enables you to laugh WITHOUT JOKES because humor is a personal feeling.  What’s funny for some can actually be  actually offensive to others.  So laugh because you CAN…..for no reason other than to feel great.

Humor perception involves the whole brain and serves to integrate and balance activity in both hemispheres. Derks, at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, has shown that there is a unique pattern of brain wave activity during the perception of humor. EEG’s were recorded on subjects while they were presented with humorous material.

Laughter truly is the best medicine!

During the setup to the joke, the cortex’s left hemisphere began its analytical function of processing words. Shortly afterward, most of the brain activity moved to the frontal lobe which is the center of emotionality. Moments later the right hemisphere’s synthesis capabilities joined with the left’s processing to find the pattern — to ‘get the joke’. A few milliseconds later, before the subject had enough time to laugh, the increased brain wave activity spread to the sensory processing areas of the brain, the occipital lobe. The increased fluctuations in delta waves reached a crescendo of activity and crested as the brain ‘got’ the joke and the external expression of laughter began. Derks’ findings shows that humor pulls the various parts of the brain together rather than activating a component in only one areaYour sense of humor provides a powerful antidote to immuno-suppressive effects of stress in two ways, through:

1. Direct effects of humor and laughter upon the immune system,
2. Indirect effects resulting from humor’s ability to help you cope on the tough days.

The simple truth is that happy people generally don’t get sick.

Bernie Siegel, M.D.

Click here to get a laugh.

The man who laughed himself to health.

Norman Cousins - (1915 to 1990), longtime editor of the Saturday Review, global peacemaker, receiver of hundreds of awards including the UN Peace Medal and nearly fifty honorary doctorate degrees, overcame a life threatening disease and a massive coronary, each time using his own nutritional and emotional support protocol.

Cousin’s seminal book ”Anatomy of an Illness” details his healing journey overcoming ankylosing spondylitis (a degenerative disease causing the breakdown of collagen). Given up to die within a few months in 1965, almost completely paralyzed, Cousins checked out of the hospital, moved into a hotel room and began taking extremely high doses of vitamin C while exposing himself to a continuous stream of humorous films and similar ”laughing matter”. His condition steadily improved and Cousins regained the use of his limbs until he was able to return to his full-time job at the Saturday Review.

Because it’s a form of self medication.
Because WE CAN … laughter is a flat out CHOICE.
Because it energizes our mind to be creative.
Because it alters the brain neuron chemistry.
Because it increases the hormones that make us feel good – such as ……dopamine and Serotonin.
Because it’s convenient.
Because it’s safe.
Because it’s easy to access.
Because there’s no cost.
Because it’s fat free.
Because it burns calories.
Because there’s no cholesterol.
Because you need no elaborate equipment.
Because it can be used anywhere for any reason, almost.
Because there are few, if any, side effects
Because it’s healing to the brain and body.

Dr. Leroy Berk who researches the benefits of laughter…..from California USA……..says…………………..

“Laughter is like aerobic exercise…….
20 seconds of aerobic laughter gives the body a work-out equivalent to 3 minutes. of hard rowing in terms of giving the heart a work-out”

LAUGHTER is a bit like changing a babies nappy.

“It may not be permanent

But

It sure makes things a whole lot better for a while”

Some more awesome stories of the transformational power of laughter.

I think laughter ought to be part of every medical prescription.

Dr. Paul M. Fleiss – CALIFORNIA.

My friends Mum and Dad were living in an Aged Home at Noosa. They became very depressed as their health deteriorated and so I decided to go to the Age Home and cheer them up with my laughter techniques. I took along my bag of bright mixed colored tutus. The residents put on a tutu (the oldest being 95 yrs) and their eyes lit up with excitement. Dress up has always been good fun. Everyone, including the nursing staff, all joined in with the fun and laughter. Even the men put on tutu’s which really got them all laughing. When the laughter stated…..it became so contagious that everyone came ‘out of the wood work’ to gravitate towards the sounds of laughter. Everyone had wonderful fun, staff included. Les died two weeks later and when they had the wake I was asked to bring along my tutu’s to celebrate her Dad’s life. Everyone celebrated what a great life Les had and rejoiced TO THE CELEBRATION AND APPRECIATION OF LIFE.

Susan Brown – Noosa – Qld. - AUSTRALIA

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