Sometimes Healing Begins By Finding Our Smile Again

 

July 1st is Canada Day! 

For many of us, it's a day of family gatherings, barbecues, fireworks, and spending time with people we love.

As I was thinking about what to write this week, I wanted it to be something meaningful, useful ... and yet light.  It is summer after all.  

Something that lightens both the body and the soul.  Something we can't buy.  Something we don't have to earn.  In fact, it came naturally to most of us as children.  Believe it or not, it's also something than can have a remarkable effect on our health.

It's laughter!

Not the polite chuckle. The kind of laughter where your shoulders relax, your eyes water a little, your belly hurts, and for a few moments you forget whatever has been weighing on you. The kind I call a "belly laugh."

My dad has one of those laughs. If you hear him laughing from another room, you almost can't help but smile. Sometimes you start laughing too, before you even know what was so funny.

Just writing this, I find myself smiling. And I noticed my shoulders relaxed a little too.

When I Couldn't Remember the Last Time I Laughed

In the early 1990's, while rebuilding my health after years of living with multiple sclerosis and several other health challenges, I came across research suggesting that laughter could actually influence our health. Scientists were beginning to study its effects on stress hormones, the immune system, and our overall sense of well-being.

At the time, I thought that was fascinating. But then I made a much more personal discovery.

I realized I had lost my sense of humour.

I grew up in Quebec, where laughing is simply part of life. We laugh at ourselves. We tease each other. Comedy shows are everywhere. Humour is woven into everyday conversations.

Yet somewhere along the way, after years of illness, worry, and uncertainty, I couldn't remember the last time I had really laughed.

Even things I used to find funny … weren't.

My Homework: Watch Seinfeld Until It Was Funny

By then, I was living in Mississauga, where television was mostly in English. People kept talking about a show called Seinfeld. We didn't really watch it growing up, and one evening I decided to give it a try.

I watched an episode. I didn't understand what everyone found so funny. I know it's not everyone's style of humour, but it was such a popular show that I decided to give it a fair chance.  So I watched another one. Still nothing.

Then I had one of those little ideas that ended up teaching me a much bigger lesson. I gave myself homework: I would watch one episode every day until I found it funny.

I honestly don't remember whether it took a few weeks or a few months. What I do remember is this.

One day … I laughed.

Not because I forced myself to. Not because life had suddenly become easier. I laughed because something inside me had begun to soften again.

"I'm Coming Back"

Over the years, I've noticed something similar with many clients. When people begin feeling better, they often begin laughing more. They smile more easily. Their family notices they're "more like themselves again."

It's almost as if the body is quietly saying, "I'm coming back."

There's good science behind this. Laughter helps lower stress hormones such as cortisol while stimulating our natural feel-good chemicals called endorphins. It also helps us connect with other people, supports our overall health, and reminds the body that it doesn't have to stay in survival mode all the time. 

No, laughter doesn't solve every problem, but it does change us while we're living through them.

Why Laughter Is the First "L" in BODiWELL

That's one of the reasons the first "L" in my BODiWELL Methodology stands for Laughter & Lower Stress.

Not because life is always funny. But because our bodies were never designed to live under constant tension.

Looking back, I don't think I was trying to learn to like Seinfeld. I was gently teaching my nervous system that it was safe to experience joy again.

Something as simple as a good laugh is one more way of supporting our health.

A Canada Day Wish

This Canada Day, as families and friends gather together, perhaps the healthiest thing we can do isn't to have the perfect meal, or follow the perfect plan.

Perhaps it's simply to laugh. To tell the old family story one more time. To play. To smile. To enjoy being together.

Health isn't built only through what we eat or the supplements we take. It's also built in the moments that help our nervous system remember what safety, joy, and connection feel like.

Wishing you a wonderful Canada Day filled with laughter, connection, and simple moments worth remembering.