Sep 25, 2008
my paper
I DON'T remember being as stressed as I have been over the last three weeks.
My father-in-law has just been diagnosed with lung cancer.
My parents are also dealing with their own health issues. There are a few crucial financial decisions which my family needs to make in the near future.
My son's PSLE is just around the corner. I have recently taken up a new portfolio at work and with it comes a slew of new challenges.
Meanwhile, financial giants are falling like dominoes. Stock markets are taking a beating. Neighbouring countries are experiencing political turmoil. Babies are dying from melamine-laced milk powder.
The sight of long queues outside the American International Assurance office last week, comprising many waiting to redeem policies because of the American International Group (AIG) meltdown, shows that Singapore has not been spared from the crisis battering the West.
Stress seems to be part of everyone's life. The United Nations International Labour Organisation has issued a report that states: "Stress has become one of the most serious health issues of our times."
Amid the doom and gloom, a colleague sent me a caricature of Wayne Rooney wearing a Manchester United football jersey with its sponsor brand AIG crossed out and replaced with the word "FED" (that is, the United States Federal Reserve, which now effectively owns AIG).
I couldn't help but laugh. Even if it was for just a moment, it made me feel good.
There are many ways to cope with stress, from sports to psychotherapy, kick-boxing and herbal infusions. All these work to some extent but they take commitment and time.
The Wayne Rooney comic reminded me that the quickest and most effective way to beat stress is to literally laugh it off.
What's more, it is easy to do and requires no special skills.
You can even burn off a few calories while doing it.
For example, laughing is good for the heart. US researchers found that people with heart disease were 40 per cent less likely to laugh in humorous situations than those with healthy hearts.
Laughter not only relaxes but it is also known to improve our immune system. Consider this:
A four-year-old, on average, laughs about 400 times a day, compared to adults who laugh only 14 times a day.
The age-old adage, "laughter is the best medicine", may be true after all.
Psychologists recognise the therapeutic value of humour and have prescribed it for their patients.
It has been written that a good belly laugh works your lungs, heart and muscles, releasing pleasure-producing brain hormones and chemicals. The greater intake of oxygen can also lower your blood pressure.
If you believe these reports, then it is time to start putting the advice into practice. Go read a humorous book, play a funny game, or call a friend and have a good chuckle over the line.
American journalist, author, professor and world-peace advocate Norman Cousins was known to have fought heart disease by training himself to laugh.
He said: "I made the joyous discovery that 10 minutes of genuine belly laughter had an anaesthetic effect and would give me at least two hours of pain-free sleep.
"When the pain-killing effect of the laughter wore off, I would switch on the motion-picture projector again and, not infrequently, it would lead to another pain-free interval."
Humour helps to put a different perspective on our problems and concerns. If we can make light of what worries us, it will start to appear less threatening.
Of course, certain "serious" incidents require us to be extra sensitive, lest we appear to trivialise them.
Still, a lot depends on the occasion and how you choose to perceive the situation.
The renowned comedian Bill Cosby once said: "If you can laugh at it, you can survive it."
I'm going to try this, and so should you. C'mon, let me hear you laugh: Ha! Ha! Ha!
-The writer is a senior vice-president of the SPH marketing division and the general manager of SPH NewMedia for Zapcode.
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