Wellbeing Basics: Laughing

“Laughter is the best medicine” – one of life’s essential mottos, and more true than you might realise. Laughter boosts your immune system, helps your mood, diminishes your perception of pain and, when shared, can strengthen and create bonds between us: and that’s just the tip of the iceberg…So here’s a piece explaining why we should value our ability to laugh, and why it’s one of life’s most vital (and healing) ‘basics’.

Why is laughter the best medicine?

When we laugh, we release ‘feel good’ endorphins, our ‘happy chemical’ serotonin and also increase the oxygen supply to our vital organs. This creates a general sense of wellbeing, not only in our brains, but throughout our body. Having a proper laugh can affect blood pressure, raise our heart-rate and generally ease tension and stress. Laughing also boosts our immune system – studies have shown that ‘happy thoughts’ can release neuropeptides which help fight stress and illness. I made a video (a long time ago) talking about some of the other health benefits of laughter, including helping combat pain and boosting your (and others’) mood. I also talk about how sharing humour and laughter creates a sense of community and strengthens relationships with others. All in all, there are truly miraculous benefits to laughter.

…but I don’t feel like laughing…

This is a hard one to crack. If you don’t feel happy or relaxed, then the chances are, you’re less likely to want to have a chuckle. However, I would make sure to have some tools on standby for when you need a good giggle, but aren’t in the mood. Does a particular film get you laughing? Do you have a friend who can always, always, always make you roar? Now’s the time to put that DVD in, or call up that friend. You’ll find that once you start laughing, it’s very hard to stop! 

(caveat: obviously, if you are experiencing symptoms of depression or really struggling to summon the desire to laugh – you should speak to a medical professional and/or consider some sort of therapy. I am by no means suggesting that laughter is a cure-all, just a great and natural mood-booster)

Okay, okay – I get it…I should laugh more. But how do I add more laughter to my day-to-day? 

Here’s five ways:

Films/TV Shows:

Do you think a particular comedian or actor is comedy gold? Does one particular TV show tickle your funny bone? Keep a stack of DVDs nearby or record them on TV, so that you can guarantee you’re laughing within minutes.

Other people:

Finding someone who shares your sense of humour, who you can be silly with and share a laugh is so important. Spend time with your favourite people and you’ll find that you all benefit from shared humour. Laughter is infectious – use that fact to your advantage!

YouTube videos:

There are millions and millions of funny YouTube videos, perfectly designed to make you laugh. Does slapstick humour get you going? Does a cat ‘talking’ make you giggle? Do you find video ‘pranks’ that go wrong make you laugh? A fan of innuendo bingo..? The world is your oyster online, so get googling and you’ll be sure to find a video that you can watch during your lunch-break that makes you laugh.

Go to a comedy club:

One of the times I’ve laughed the most (that “I-can’t-breathe-my-face-is-going-to-crack-my-stomach hurts-I-think-I-broke-a-rib” feeling) is when I went to the Comedy Store in London. I highly, highly recommend a night of stand-up or improv to inject some laughter into your life.

Spend time with children or pets:

I find I’m always laughing or smiling when I’m around little ones and furry things. The cute and adorable things they do never fail to amuse me. If you don’t have a pet or a child to hand – borrow one! You’ll do your friends a massive favour by offering to walk their dogs or babysit their children, and you gain a lot too!

Do you make time to laugh? What do you find really funny? Has your sense of humour changed? Are you struggling to find things to laugh at right now? Let us know…

How to get in touch (and all that social media stuff)

YouTube

Instagram

Twitter

Blog

Email

Facebook 

Wellbeing Basics: Relaxing

As Frankie says, “Relax” – not only a choooon, but a great piece of advice. Relaxing and taking time ‘out’ is one of life’s necessities. One which often gets overlooked, especially in our modern, 24/7 lives.

Why is feeling relaxed so important?

However you might describe your own personal state of ‘relaxation’, it’s a very important feeling to nurture. Feeling stressed and anxious is not good for you and fuelling this by pushing yourself to extremes and maintaining a hectic, chaotic lifestyle will do you no favours in the long run. 

Now for the science bit...

The ‘stress hormone’ cortisol, which our bodies produce as a response to physically or emotionally stressful situations, shuts down ‘unnecessary’ bodily functions to help us manage those stresses. This can be a really great thing, but also could lead to your body going a little haywire. Some of those ‘unnecessary’ functions which are messed with are our reproduction and immune systems. Both of which are, I hope you’ll agree, pretty important! Chronic stress (and cortisol production) can create a vicious circle and be hard to reverse. This is just one of the many reasons why cultivating relaxation time is so vital and should be considered one of life’s basics.

I’m too busy to spend time relaxing…

Possibly true, but there are often times in the day when you can snatch 5-10 minutes and re-centre. You don’t have to spend a whole day relaxing to benefit. I think the key, especially when we feel we are just too busy, is to prioritise relaxation and make the time. We can often feel guilty putting ourselves first or by not having a jam-packed weekend. But the impact of you not carving out a little ‘me’ time can be profound. We shouldn’t see relaxation time as a luxury – but as an essential. Value yourself enough to create a little time in your day or week when you can relax. Think about your energy as a battery which needs recharging regularly. Along with sleep and food, relaxation helps charge that battery and means you can feel better, do more, stay healthy and remain happy. Who wouldn’t want to make time for that?

I don’t know how to relax…

A very common problem actually! Some people can feel so hyped-up and full of adrenalin that it’s hard to just ‘be’. A lot of people think that relaxing means you have to lie still in a darkened room doing nothing; not true. You might feel fidgety, frustrated, bad-tempered or upset if you are battling to relax. In these situations, I would suggest doing an activity which you find relaxing, or allows another part of your ‘self’ to be expressed. So, if you enjoy cooking – cook. If you lead a very sedentary life, why not try and go for a jog. If you rarely take baths, but love a good soak – run yourself a bath. If you feel starved of culture – pay a visit to a museum. If you find a particular friend soothing – go and have a cup of tea with them. The list is endless! I made a video about how to self-soothe using different senses here, which may help with ideas and inspiration.

Five short-cut ways to feel relaxed:

• Meditation and Mindfulness – a lot of people find the art of meditating or practicing mindfulness very calming. Headspace have created a great app, which allows you to learn how to be mindful on the go in short sessions.

• Breathe – easier said than done right, and something which I've written about here. A very potent (and often un-tapped) tool to help you relax and unwind.

• Laugh – watching something funny on TV or chatting to a friend with a similar sense of humour is a great way to get some LOLs in your life. Laughing releases endorphins – our happy chemical and can help us to relax and de-stress. I filmed a video on the power of laughing here.

• Exercise – doing some gentle exercise can, again like laughing, release feel-good chemicals and also keeps you fit and healthy. I have made lots of videos on exercise here.

• Music – another powerful tool to de-stress. Whether you find comfort from head-banging hard rock or the dulcet tones of a whale singing, listening to music can really help aid relaxation, lower blood pressure and reduce anxiety.

What do you do to relax? Do you always make time for yourself, or do you find it a struggle? 

How to get in touch (and all that social media stuff)

YouTube

Instagram
Twitter
Blog
Email
Facebook 

Wellbeing Basics: Breathing

The second in my Wellbeing Basics series. The first one on sleep can be found here.

Here's a blonde joke (disclaimer: as a blonde-ish person myself I feel I am allowed to make one…sort of) - A blonde walks into a beauty shop with a pair of headphones on. She asks for a haircut. The blonde is led to a chair and asked to sit down. "Make my hair look good, but whatever you do, don't take off the headphones", the blonde instructs. The blonde falls asleep during the haircut and the hair stylist thinks, "It’s really hard to cut with these headphones on". She takes them off, and the blonde dies. The stylist calls an ambulance and when they take the blonde away the intrigued stylist picks up the headphones and takes a listen. She hears a little voice saying "Breathe in, breathe out, breathe in, breathe out..." So now you all know (if you hadn’t guessed already) that breathing is rather important – and you can actually be doing it wrong!

Why should I care about my breathing so much?

Apart from the obvious (see above), our breathing – or more importantly the way we breathe – can have a big impact on, not only our bodies, but also our emotions. Breathing is an automatic mechanism. It’s controlled by our autonomic nervous system and we don’t have to consciously think about breathing in and out. Because our bodies are incredibly clever, our autonomic nervous system adjusts our breathing to suit our body’s needs. If we are exerting ourselves, if we are anxious, if we are ill – our breathing changes as a result. This can be very helpful. However, it can also sometimes be unhelpful. Over-breathing (or hyperventilation) can upset our body’s chemistry and in turn result in negative physical and emotional symptoms. The opposite problem – hypoventilation (breathing too slowly) can result in too much carbon dioxide being in the blood and not enough oxygen. Studies have shown that there is a high correlation between ‘incorrect’ breathing and a number of illnesses, for example: heart disease, high blood pressure, insomnia, chronic inflammation, anxiety – to name but a few.

Someone told me I’m breathing from the wrong place – how is that possible?

We know that breathing too quickly or too slowly can be unhelpful, but it also matters where you’re breathing from. This may sound odd, but a lot of people breathe from the ‘wrong’ place.

Here’s a simple test to check: if you take a minute or so and concentrate on your breathing what part of your body is rising and falling? Are your chest and shoulders moving, or is your abdomen?

If your chest and shoulders are rising and falling, this probably means you aren’t using your diaphragm (a huge, dome-shaped muscle at the bottom of the rib cage) to breathe. The diaphragm is the best place to breathe from. Chest breathing can mean you feel anxious a lot of the time, that you’re over-breathing and causing potential imbalances to your body chemistry. Disproportionate amounts of oxygen and carbon dioxide can have a radical impact on your health – meaning you can feel fatigued, nervy or cross; while potentially doing yourself more serious damage in the long run.

I find the most helpful way to calm myself is to concentrate on my stomach and breathe from there. Think of your abdomen as a balloon that’s slowly filling up with air as you inhale and then slowly releasing the air (or deflating the balloon) as you exhale – try to do this without your chest or shoulders rising. Another option is to lie flat on the floor or your bed and place a book on your stomach, covering your belly button, and try to lift the book by breathing in and out – this can help focus your mind on exactly where you should be breathing from. Attempt to make your stomach bigger (vanity will have to be out aside!) – this way your body will learn to breathe from your diaphragm rather than your chest.

Many people can find it a slightly uncomfortable or strange experience to change their breathing pattern – but I would suggest you try it and keep persevering! You may feel sleepy at first, or get some funny flutterings in your diaphragm – these are all part of your body adapting to quite a significant change to its norm. It is, however, a positive change. If you can practice this technique for a couple of minutes a day, you will slowly start to breathe from your diaphragm reaping the rewards, both physically and emotionally, as a result.

Five tips to breathe in a healthier way:

·       Join a choir – you will learn all about breath control and diaphragmatic breathing, plus it can be a fun and rewarding activity!

·       Try 7/11 breathing for five to ten minutes every day – that’s inhaling for seven seconds and then exhaling for eleven seconds, this can help regulate your breathing and re-balance your body chemistry.

·       Be more mindful – we can unconsciously hold our breath when we are anxious, angry, concentrating or exerting ourselves; try to be more aware of your breath and how you are breathing – I talk a little about breathing in an old video of mine here (at about 9 and a half minutes in).

·       Practice yoga or Tai Chi – a lot of yoga and Tai Chi exercises include breathing techniques which may prove beneficial, plus you’re getting some exercise at the same time; it’s a win, win really!

·       Download a breathing app – it may sound very close to the blonde joke I opened with, but they can be very useful as a guide if you need to quickly regulate your breathing or calm down – I’ve been using Breathing Zone, but there are lots of free options which I am sure are just as helpful. I talked a bit about Breathing Zone in this video here.

Do you breathe using your diaphragm? What are some things you find helpful to regulate your breathing?

How to get in touch (and all that social media stuff)

YouTube

Instagram

Twitter

Blog

Email

Facebook 

Wellbeing Basics: Sleeping

“Sleep is that golden chain that ties health and our bodies together” said Thomas Dekker, a writer in the Elizabethan times. And boy, was he right! Sleep (or lack thereof) is such a hot topic. Recently, the world has started waking up (pun intended) to the fact that getting good quality sleep is one of the foundations of a healthy life. This article will try to answer a few of the most common questions about sleep and hopefully help you to get a better night’s rest - one of the basics of wellbeing, and my first piece in the series.

Why is sleep so important anyway?

Sleep improves not only your physical health, but your emotional health too. Studies have shown that adequate sleep can help aid memory, reduce inflammation, improve our immune system, boost our ability to learn, improve mood and so much more. Chronic sleep deprivation (regularly getting less sleep than you need) is becoming a global issue. The impact of not getting the optimum amount of sleep can be serious. One study has found that not getting enough sleep is more dangerous to your health than smoking, having high blood pressure or heart disease. While this may sound like scare-mongering, lack of sleep (or sleep debt) can seriously impact your quality of life.  For example, you may find that you put on weight, are less able to focus, feel anxious or get ill more often if you are in a state of sleep debt.

What are the different phases of sleep; what do they mean for me?

There has been a lot of research into sleep and the theories are still developing, but the general consensus is that there are a few different stages of sleep.

One of these is REM (Rapid Eye Movement). This type of sleep is the most ‘active’ part of your sleep – this is thought to be the stage where you dream. In REM sleep, your brain can be as active as it is when you are awake. Your brain is not only processing the events of the day, but also doing a bit of ‘waste management’ by clearing away toxins and strengthening/weakening connections in our brain.

Another kind of sleep is NREM (Non-Rapid Eye Movement). This can be further broken down into four stages. Essentially, the last two stages of NREM are the deepest parts of your sleep. This is when your body heals and restores itself. Hormones are released which build muscle, energy is replenished, tissues are healed, blood pressure and heart rate drops.

Hopefully this shows you that, far from being a waste of time, sleep is a key component in rebuilding, renewing and maintaining a healthy and happy life.

Why is eight hours considered the ‘magic’ number?

There is a theory (much touted) that eight hours is the perfect amount of sleep to have. However, this theory is being challenged. Some people seem to need less, some more. There is such a thing as sleeping too much; this can actually be as harmful as not getting enough sleep.

How much sleep we need can depend on many things such as our age, life events, and illness. I think the answer to this question lies with the individual. Ask yourself if you feel at your best with five…seven…ten hours of sleep. If your answer is different from the amount you usually get, then something needs to change for you to get your optimum amount of sleep.

I can’t get to sleep – how do I sort this out?

Our modern day lives are not allowing us to get enough sleep, but they also are damaging our ability to ‘wind down’ and switch off. Sleep hygiene is a new-ish concept and I made a video talking about some simple habits to help improve sleep here.

With our addiction to the internet and smart phones it’s incredibly easy to remain hyper-active and alert during the hour or so before bedtime. We bring TVs and phones into our bedrooms which, I believe, are one of the main causes of not being able to get to sleep. Screens emit blue light which cause our body’s circadian rhythm (our body clock) to malfunction. Blue light can interfere with the production of melatonin, the hormone that regulates sleep. If you don’t feel tired, the chances are that you’ve been late-night texting or watching your favourite series on Netflix in the wee hours. If you need to use your screens in the evening, you can download f.lux – free software that adjusts the light levels on your screen and helps reduce the impact of blue light.

Eating a sensible meal before bed can also help a lot. Avoid fatty, starchy, sugary foods and make sure you eat enough. If you feel peckish in the night – get up and eat something like a banana.

Regular exercise is important in helping you sleep. Just don’t exercise too near bedtime as this can stimulate you and interfere with your body clock. If you want to do some exercise near bedtime, I would recommend light stretching or yoga, as this isn’t too strenuous and can prove relaxing.

Worry and stress can certainly play a big role in being ready for sleep. While there are a lot of things that can help you relax, one of the best things to do is to have a pad of paper and a pen by your bed. If something is really exercising your mind, write it down, get it out of your head and address it in the morning. This way you shouldn’t have to spend all night ruminating over it, or worrying you’ll forget something.

If I only did three things to help sleep better what would they be?

• Set yourself a cut-off time for electronics – e.g. "from 10pm I won’t look at my phone until the morning or watch TV."
• Have a relaxing routine at the end of your day: take a bath; make a cup of herb tea; read a chapter of a book; have a chat to a loved one. This creates a lovely ritual and can help you wind down and relax, meaning it’s easier for you to settle at bedtime.
• Keep your bedroom clutter-free, calm and cool as your bedroom has to be conducive to sleep. Having a messy and chaotic room can result in you feeling the same way!

How much sleep do you get a night? Have you got any tips that mean you get your forty winks?

How to get in touch (and all that social media stuff)

YouTube
Instagram
Twitter
Blog
Email
Facebook