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How Relaxing and Laughing Helps to Reduce Stress
We live in tough, unpredictable times. There’s plenty of extra stress and anxiety floating around in the world, and it’s easy to feel like you’re being crushed beneath negative thoughts. With the high tension and stress affecting your mental health, it’s more important than ever to do whatever you can to maintain peace of mind, keep yourself happy, and stay grateful and positive.
At R3SET, we believe that no one should ever have to feel like they’re drowning in the effects of stress.
You’re in charge of your stress, not the other way around – that means you’ve got the power to face these trying times and keep a clear, calm mind.
In this post, that’s exactly what we’ll be discussing. This article is all about how two simple practices – taking time to relax and laugh each day – can help you reduce everyday stress and anxiety.
Stress And Your Health
You’ve probably heard it a million times – stress is bad for you. But do you know why it’s unhealthy to stay in a perpetual state of stress and occasional episodes of anxiety? Let’s briefly unpack the science of stress and its negative impact on your body and mind.
When you are stressed, three key systems within your body can be significantly affected. Stress negatively impacts your endocrine system, your immune system, and your nervous system.
Stress and the Nervous System
Your nervous system has a natural protective response to perceived threats. This initial activation of the stress response is known as your “fight-or-flight response”. This response involves the release of many chemicals like; epinephrine (adrenaline), norepinephrine (noradrenaline) and the stress hormone cortisol, which helps your body and mind properly react to dangerous situations, among other things.
However, stressful situations and chronic stressand episodes of occasional anxiety also can keep your “fight-or-flight” response engaged – even when your life is not in danger. When you are stressed out, your body can get physically engaged in the same way it would if your life was at risk.
In the long run, a constantly engaged fight-or-flight response can lead to problems like adrenal fatigue, a type of chronic exhaustion that typically stems from excess production, leading to a deficiency of various anti-stress mediators, as well as lead to more chronic anxiety disorders
Stress and the Endocrine System
The endocrine system controls the release of various mediators such as; hormones like cortisol, a chemical that helps your body react to stressors. With chronic stress – stress that rarely subsides and is more severe – can lead to the overproduction of cortisol. Excess cortisol production is linked to a wide range of issues, including weight problems.
Stress and the Immune System
The immune system protects your body from bacteria, viruses, and other bad stuff that can make you sick. Under chronic stress, your body can become more vulnerable to sickness, as your immune system can be compromised by the impact of stress on your body.
Laughter and Stress Relief
So, now that you know how stress can negatively impact your body and mind, let’s talk about one of your best defenses against it – laughter.
Laughing is one of the best parts of life. When something makes you laugh, it’s a little reminder of the joy of being alive. But did you know that aside from just being a good time, laughing can also help to relieve stress?
Laughter can help to alleviate stress by engaging your stress response in a healthy, manageable way. When you laugh, you’re also getting relief from stress in a practical sense – laughter takes your mind off of stressful, anxiety-provoking circumstances in your life.
A good laugh has physical health benefits beyond the effects of a positive attitude, and putting on a funny movie or trying laughter yoga with your loved ones can do wonders for your overall wellness. Laughter raises, then lowers your blood pressure and your heart rate for a euphoric effect that has colloquially been referred to as “the best medicine.”
When you’re struggling to manage your stress, taking the time to seek out something funny is one of the most worthwhile habits you can form – both for your body and mind. Everyone’s sense of humor is different, so where you find something funny depends on what tends to make you laugh. For some, all it takes is a few goofy TikTok videos to get cheered up and have a much-needed laugh. For others, a favorite sitcom or a Facetime call with a particularly hilarious friend or family member might be a better option.
Many people use laughter as a coping mechanism. When times get tough, finding something to laugh at is one of the healthiest ways to cope. There’s always a funny side to life, even when things seem gloomy.
Relaxing To Get Relief from Stress
When you’re stressed out, it’s incredibly helpful to turn to reliable, simple ways of calming your body and mind. Some of the best ways to relax and get relief from stress are through exercise and meditation.
Moving your body is an excellent way to reduce everyday stress and anxiety. When you exercise, your body releases hormones called endorphins. Endorphins promote feelings of calm, contentment, and pleasure. They’re the reason for the “runner’s high” phenomenon and the overall peaceful feeling that you get when you get into a groove with any form of exercise.
Endorphins make exercising a rewarding experience, and they also have a direct positive impact on stress levels. These hormones help you deal with stress in a natural, healthy way. Likewise, exercise is great for both your body and your mind. It can help you stay in shape, and it’s also a strong defense against mood issues like depression.
Even 30 minutes of daily exercise can be a huge help in getting you the relief that you need from everyday stress. Your daily movement doesn’t need to be intense, either – even a pleasant walk can help to reduce stress. Any form of exercise that appeals most to you is the best type of movement to stick with for your daily anti-stress routine.
In addition to exercising daily, you can also benefit greatly from including meditation in your routine. Meditation has been used for millennia to promote calm and provide relief from anxiety. While it has often been used as an inherently spiritual practice, you don’t need to practice meditation in a religious or spiritual context if you don’t want to. Instead, you can simply meditate by intentionally calming your mind and taking time to sit quietly.
While meditating may seem deceptively simple, it’s actually quite challenging. In a world full of noise and distractions, it can be incredibly hard to deliberately slow down, silence the vibrations and ringtones of your devices, and sit quietly for just a few minutes. However, the more you train yourself to calm your mind and enter into a meditative state, the better you’ll get at it.
Meditation has been linked to reduced levels of stress and anxiety, making it an excellent practice to keep up for the sake of your overall well-being.
Summary
So, what have we learned? Laughter and relaxation are always worth your time, and they’re some of your best defenses against stress and anxiety. In an especially stressful time, it’s more important than ever to take time to chill out, relax, and have a laugh as often as possible.
Knowing that stress can have some serious long-term negative effects on your body and mind, now is the time to include more calming and fun habits in your daily routine. Anything that helps you unwind, laugh, and look on the bright side of life is worth practicing daily.
Even though it may seem silly, laughter is a discipline. If you can train yourself to respond by taking yourself – and the rest of life – a bit less seriously from time to time, you’ll discover that there’s always something to be happy about and thankful for. The more you laugh, the more you’ll reap the stress-relieving benefits of seeing the humor in everything.
While stress is a completely normal part of life, that doesn’t mean you’re stuck with it. When stress gets out of control, it can start to have major negative effects on your physical and emotional health. We don’t want you to get anywhere near the threshold where stress starts to have a long-term negative impact. That's why we created our Calm and Unwind supplements.
Calm and Unwind are daily supplements designed to help you manage everyday stress and occasional anxiety. Both Calm and Unwind were formulated with active natural botanical powerhouse ingredients backed by numerous scientific studies, to help you deal with everyday stress and occasional anxiety, these capsules are easy to include in your daily routine*.
To learn more about R3SET supplements and how they can help you manage stress, click here. In addition, if you’re curious about the science of stress, its effects on your body, and how you can live a calmer, happier life, make sure to visit the R3SET blog.
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease
To learn more about the science of stress prevention and how R3SET can help you deal with everyday stress and anxiety, click here to visit our Stress 101 page.
Sources:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1361287/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3602916/
https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/stress-relief/art-20044456