Death From Overwork (Suzanne Forster)

The Japanese call it karoshi, which literally means death from overwork. I call it a book deadline. I’m still deep in the throes of mine and will be for a couple more weeks, at least. What seems to keep me alive and reasonably well, despite the killer schedule, are some tips for reducing stress that actually work.

The first one is laughter, and I went straight to the experts to back up the claims that laughter really is the best medicine. What follows is an excerpt from a truly inspiring article on the benefits of laughter by Mike Adams. I’ve also included a link so you can check out the rest of the article. Plus, I found a goofy cartoon to get you started on your chuckles for today. Maybe only a writer could love it, but I just had to share.

"LAUGHTER IS GOOD MEDICINE FOR REDUCING STRESS AND ENHANCING BRAIN CHEMISTRY, by Mike Adams.

How do you actually reduce the levels of chronic stress in your body and enhance your lifespan, boost immune system function, protect your nervous system and your sanity, and give your endocrine system a much-needed rest? Fortunately there are several easy ways to do this. Let's start with the easiest one: laughter.

Laughter is a healing activity. You may have seen the movie called "Patch Adams," which is a movie about a real life doctor who still practices today and uses laughter as healing. He's quite correct in using laughter as a healing therapy, because it is one of the most healing activities in which you can engage."

That’s just a quick look. Here’s the link if you’d like to check out the rest of Mike’s article. I’d do it if I were you. He actually makes the astounding claim that every minute of laughter produces $10,000 worth of healthy body chemistry. And then he proves it!

http://www.newstarget.com/z007551.html

And here’s the cartoon I promised.

Oops, nope, guess not. Somehow it's showing up at the top of the post, and I have no clue how to get it down here here it belongs. Sorry. I hope that doesn't make it any less funny.

Wishing you smiles and laughter all day long,

Suz