Practice
Laughter
A merry heart doeth good like a medicine... laughter is a free, joyful practice studied for easing stress and lifting mood.
⤢📊 How it ranks (our editor score) — 86/100Tap to see the breakdown
🌱 What it is
Laughter is the body's natural response to humor and joy, ranging from a quiet chuckle to deep belly laughs, and can be practiced intentionally through humor, or simply spending time with joyful people.
📜 Where it comes from
The value of a cheerful spirit is affirmed in the biblical book of Proverbs, which declares that a merry heart does good like medicine, a piece of wisdom literature many generations old. This ancient insight anticipated modern laughter therapy, a field that emerged in the latter 20th century after researchers began studying humor's effects on stress hormones and mood. The practice today blends this old scriptural wisdom with newer behavioral science.
✨ Why it's good for you
- May help ease everyday stress and tension
- Studied for short-term mood lift and relaxation
- May help support a sense of connection when shared with others
- Proverbs 17:22 calls a merry heart 'good like a medicine'
- Early research on laughter therapy has measured short-term shifts in immune markers like natural killer cell activity, though clinical significance for actual illness risk isn't established
🙏 Begin with prayer
Prayer is the first remedy, not the last resort. Whether you are facing this yourself, caring for someone who is, or simply reading to understand — here is a simple prayer you are welcome to make your own, in your name or in theirs:
Lord Jesus, thank You for laughter and for the joy that lifts a heavy heart. Your word tells me a merry heart doeth good like a medicine, and I thank You for this simple gift woven into how You made us. Bless the laughter I share with those I love, and let it ease my stress without ever replacing real help when sorrow runs deep. Where my spirit is broken, meet me there too. In Jesus' name, Amen.
“A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.”— Proverbs 17:22
🥄 How to use it
Watch or read something genuinely funny, spend time with people who make you laugh. Even a few minutes of intentional laughter daily can become a habit worth keeping.
How much: No set dose... a few minutes of genuine laughter daily, as often as it comes.
Why it works: Laughter may help lower stress hormones and relax muscles briefly, and is studied for its short-term mood-lifting effects, though it is not a substitute for treating clinical depression.
⚠️ Cautions
- Persistent sadness, hopelessness, or loss of interest in life needs a doctor or counselor... laughter can lift a moment, but it does not treat clinical depression.
- Vigorous laughing can strain an existing hernia, recent surgical incision, or cause momentary urinary leakage in some people... ease into it if that applies to you.
- Grief and loss deserve their season; laughter is not meant to bypass mourning.
📚 Learn more
🌿 Deeper natural detail
Curated links coming for this one.
🩺 The conventional view
💬 Ask Remy about Laughter
📚 Resource confidence
Based on mentions in health references
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💬 Comments & experiences
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