About 44 years ago I was in terrible shape. More than three years earlier I had hurt my back running and since that time I had been in terrible pain and my life had ground to a halt. Doctors were at a loss to explain why I was still in pain. They gave me drugs that didn’t help and made me into a zombie.
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I was in despair. I was being told by my doctors that I might be like this for the rest of my life. I was thinking about suicide. Fortunately, a friend recommended a book that changed my life. It was by a man named Norman Cousins, who was diagnosed with a painful, progressively crippling degenerative joint disease. Cousins was an educated, highly accomplished man. He couldn’t accept his doctor’s prognosis that his condition would continue to worsen until he died.
Cousins did his own research. He discovered that the will to live was really important in healing and he decided that for him what made life worth living was laughter. So he embarked on a program of “laughter therapy”. He found that 10 minutes of belly laughs gave him two hours of pain free sleep. He eventually completely healed his condition with just laughter therapy and vitamin C (which he read was important for joint health).
This was the first time I had ever heard that what was in my mind affected my body. I followed some of Cousin’s suggestions, including paying more attention to what I was focusing my mind on and seeking out a treatment called biofeedback. As a result, I was able to recover and resume my life.
Years later, scientists discovered that when we laugh our bodies produce substances called endorphins. Endorphins are the body’s own opioids, produced by the body to control pain. It is the cell receptors for endorphins that heroin and prescription opioids attach to in order to produce their effects. Unlike with those drugs, with endorphins you can’t get addicted and you can’t overdose.
So, for decades now, I’ve valued every opportunity to laugh. But good laughs can be hard to find, especially in the middle of a busy day. One great option is Sirius XM satellite radio. Sirius XM has hundreds of stations, including many stations of standup comedy. And the comedy is often laugh-out-loud funny. My favorite is Pure Comedy, billed as family friendly comedy. It’s comedy for grownups but without the raunchy stuff so often present in standup comedy.
Sirius XM can be played in your car on satellite radio. You can also stream Sirius XM on any device that connects to the internet.
There are other cool channels too. Another favorite of mine is Spa, which plays only soothing, relaxing, commercial free new age music. You can also select stations that play only music from your favorite decade or your favorite musician or your favorite musical genre. There is some evidence to suggest that when you surround yourself with reminders of when you were younger, your body actually starts to reverse the aging process. So, try picking a decade when you were feeling great and immerse yourself in the tunes of that time.
Find out about pricing and plans by going to www.siriusxm.com or by calling Sirius XM at 1-866-665-2846.
Of course there are many other sources for increasing laughter in your life, including seeking out funny videos on the internet (YouTube funny cat videos are a favorite with many and I especially love the Dry Bar Comedy offerings), joke websites, funny TV shows and movies, humorous books and funny people. Check them out and start making your own opioids!
Want to know more about drug-free pain relief? Order my book:
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Cindy Perlin, is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, certified biofeedback practitioner and chronic pain survivor. She is the founder and CEO of the Alternative Pain Treatment Directory and the author of The Truth About Chronic Pain Treatments: The Best and Worst Strategies for Becoming Pain Free. She's located in the Albany, NY area, where she has been helping people improve their health and emotional well-being for over 30 years. See her provider profile HERE.
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