Laughter is a blessing for body and soul. Yoga too. So it sounds like a clever idea to combine both. What laughter yoga brings – and where its limits lie.
Giggle and snort until your eyes water and your stomach muscles tremble: laughter is good for you. The more often you do it, the better it is for your mental and physical well-being. So the idea of making targeted use of the positive effects of laughter is obvious – with laughter yoga this is possible. But what exactly is that?
What does laughter yoga understand?
«Yoga techniques such as stretching and breathing exercises are combined with playful laughter exercises,» says Flensburg humor researcher Prof. Tabea Scheel. The idea behind it: The initially artificial laughter turns into real laughter with constant repetition.
Laughter yoga takes place under guidance, usually you practice in a group. There is a deeper meaning behind this: «Laughter yoga thrives on active togetherness and positive contagion,» says Inge Fechter, laughter yoga trainer in Rosenheim. This not only lifts the mood, but can also have other positive effects on our health.
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Can laughter yoga also help with diseases such as depression?
However, laughter yoga has its limits. «Of course, laughter yoga is not a substitute for therapy or surgery, it has a preventive and accompanying effect,» Fechter clarifies. According to humor researcher Scheel, it has not yet been scientifically proven that laughter yoga has a beneficial effect on diseases such as depression.
It has occasionally been observed that laughter in connection with yoga techniques achieves positive effects on depressives, at least in the short term. Whether the effect will last is an open question. But what is clear: In the short term, laughter causes the level of stress hormones to drop and happiness hormones to spread in the body.
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A laughter yoga class can trigger other positive effects in the body: Breathing deepens, which means more oxygen gets into the blood and brain. This is how the cardiovascular system gets going. Laughter can also lower blood pressure. However, this is also more of a short-term effect. And: “Our minds are free,” says Inge Fechter. While laughing heartily, it is hardly possible to indulge in negative thoughts. «Laughter is an outlet that takes the pressure off us and creates space for confidence and hope again.»
Exercise examples from laughter yoga
There are various exercises that invite you to laugh. One involves stretching your arms high while taking deep breaths. Then shake your arms out downwards, exhaling with a laugh. Repeat this exercise ten to twelve times.
Another laughter yoga exercise is called “flower picking”. You pick an imaginary flower and pretend to smell it. This results in a deep inhalation. When exhaling, the air is then «laughed out».
Inge Fechter works as a certified laughter yoga trainer in RosenheimPhoto: Anita Berger/Inge Fechter/dpa-tmn
These examples show that humor and creativity are important components of laughter yoga. There is clapping, jumping, dancing and pantomiming. «This can quickly lead to spontaneous and genuine laughter among participants in a laughter yoga group,» says Inge Fechter. This happens automatically, because «when we look at a smiling face, we are encouraged to laugh too,» says the laughter yoga trainer.
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Laughter can be learned
This also applies to people who may not constantly giggle and splutter in their everyday lives. Humor researcher Tabea Scheel is convinced that laughing from the heart can also be learned for these people.
There are now laughter yoga groups in many cities. «Even in companies, clinics, schools and social institutions, laughter yoga is being practiced more and more frequently,» explains Inge Fechter. If you can’t find a course nearby, you can also attend an online seminar.
With material from dpa