Laughter, song, and dance
This week鈥檚 challenge was to 鈥榣et go of being cool and always in control鈥 and the first thought that came to mind was one of the Friends episodes - The One With the Routine (Season 6 Episode 10). Yes I鈥檓 a 90s kid, but I don鈥檛 know what possessed my friends and me from trying to recreate The Routine - we even recorded it! It was meant to be a quiet girls鈥 night in, spent in our pyjamas as we shared a gorgeous grazing table and watched episode after episode of Friends. Recreating a goofy dance routine wasn鈥檛 part of the plan!聽
I鈥檓 a horrible dancer, and I get very self-conscious, but in the company of true friends, it was a no-brainer to join in on the silliness! We all looked ridiculous. We were laughing ourselves silly! You鈥檇 think looking back to the recording of The Routine I鈥檇 cringe, but all my body remembers is that we were all so happy. It was a night filled to the brim with laughter, song, and dance!聽
Laughter鈥檚 so good - but what makes it so good? I asked other students what benefits they experience from laughter and here are some of the things they鈥檝e said.
- Laughter relaxes my body.
- It lightens a stressful day for me.
- When I鈥檓 with friends, shared laughter strengthens our bond.
- I read somewhere that laughter can trigger the release of natural feel-good chemicals in the body.聽
- It soothes tension.
- It fosters an emotional connection with other people.
- Just the physical change in my face when I laugh seems to help me into a better mood.
Maybe now that assessments are over, and while it isn鈥檛 fully beach weather, we can host a comedy movie marathon. The next mini-survey I did was to ask what some of their favourite funny movies were. Here are some of them, which might not actually fit your taste so feel free to tag us to let us know of any of your favourite comedies we鈥檝e missed.
- Kung Fu Hustle
- Forgetting Sarah Marshall
- Frances Ha
- The Royal Tenenbaums
- The Grand Budapest Hotel
- Booksmart
- Sideways
- Game Night
- Bad Neighbors
- Hot Fuzz
- Elf
- Bridesmaids
- Palm Springs
Cultivating Laughter, Song, and Dance: Letting Go of Being Cool and 鈥淎lways in Control鈥. *This is part of a blog series from my reflections during Mental Health Awareness Month and integrating the guideposts from in my HDR experience