Chronic Pain

Laugh Out Loud: Health Benefits of Laughing

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Any blog on laughter would be incomplete without the repeating the phrase “laughter is the best medicine”. This statement actually does have some truth to it – both short term and long term. Laughter and laughing is defined as the noise made when one expresses amusement at something. This expression of amusement can impact not only mental health, but physical health as well. The short term benefits of laughter include the following:

  • Muscle relaxation (that can last up to 45 minutes)
  • Improved circulation (benefitting organ function)
  • Increased oxygen consumption (which may aid with conditions of the lung)
  • Decreased anxiety during an anticipatory period (e.g. Before an exam)
  • Lightened mood

The long – term benefits of laughter include:

  • Decreased blood pressure overall
  • Decreased production of the stress hormone cortisol
  • Improved immune function through increased production of natural killer cells, antibodies, interferon, and T cells (can kill tumor cells, bacteria, and viruses).
  • Increased pain tolerance due to increased production of endorphins
  • Improved mood and decreased depression
  • Improved coping in stressful situations

How much laughter will help? 

The research varies in how much laughter is necessary to achieve results. Some research has shown that 10 minutes of laughing can cause 2 hours of pain free sleep. However, other research studies have shown that it was following an hour and a half comedy that benefits were achieved. The ultimate answer is that there is not a definitive amount of time of laughing that will aid with overall health. Keeping a light heart and laughing when possible is what seems to be the best advice that can be given with the research at hand.

Have you benefitted from reading this blog? Know someone that would benefit as well? Share, Like, Comment, or Tweet this article, and let me know what you think.

Some of the information provided above may not be appropriate for everyone, please consult with your doctor before trying any of the above. If you are interested in Naturopathic Medicine and wanting a different approach to your health care needs, contact Dr. Elisha Cook ND by calling 519-537-7058 and book your appointment today!

References:

http://www.hindawi.com/journals/ecam/2008/904752/abs/

http://psycnet.apa.org/psycinfo/2001-01085-003

http://www.cfp.ca/content/55/10/965.short#sec-2

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Rod_Martin/publication/254080902_Is_Laughter_the_Best_Medicine_Humor_Laughter_and_Physical_Health/links/5460f5530cf295b56163825f.pdf

http://digitalcommons.wku.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1008&context=nurs_fac_pub

http://users.skynet.be/bs939021/artikels/humor%20laughter%20physical%20health.pdf

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/stress-relief/art-20044456

Gratitude Practices

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GratitudeAs Thanksgiving approaches this weekend, it is important to consider what one is thankful for. However, as some may have heard before, an “attitude of gratitude” is a type of attitude that should be adopted year round. This type of grateful thinking on a regular basis can have many health benefits including, but not limited to:

  • Increased ability to achieve life goals.
  • Increased happiness
  • Strengthened and built relationships
  • Increase alertness and energy
  • Longer and better quality of sleep
  • Increased immunity
  • Increase overall physical health

For more detail on the mechanism and precise estimates on how much gratefulness can benefit your health, see my previous blog on the health benefits of being thankful. Now that we know what being thankful can do for our health, one needs to know how one can adopt this gratitude mindset. Different individuals may choose to do this differently. For some it will be more of an outward expression, for others it may be more internal. The bottom line is choose what suits you best, and go from there. The list below provides some examples of what has been researched and shown to have positive health benefits, but you do not need to limit thankfulness practices to these suggestions. Get creative and get thankful in the way you deem best! I challenge you to try and conduct a thankful exercise of your choice every day and see how it benefits you.

  1. Record happy events – improve well – being and positive emotions
  2. Express gratitude – improve well-being and positive emotions
  3. Give thanks to God for all you have both tangible and non-tangible – In some studies when expressed toward God caused decreased stress and improved health in stressful situations
  4. Record things grateful for – improve emotional well-being and interpersonal benefits
  5. Look in the mirror and say I appreciate you and am thankful for you – For the health benefits of positive self-talk and for some other self-affirmations you can speak over yourself, refer to my past blog on positive self-talk.

Have you benefitted from reading this blog? Know someone that would benefit as well? Share, Like, Comment, or Tweet this article, and let me know what you think.

Some of the information provided above may not be appropriate for everyone, please consult with your doctor before trying any of the above. If you are interested in Naturopathic Medicine and wanting a different approach to your health care needs, contact Elisha Cook via the contact portion of this website.

Sources:

http://ccn.aacnjournals.org/content/29/6/12.full

http://en.cnki.com.cn/Article_en/CJFDTOTAL-XLKX200903022.htm

http://psycnet.apa.org/journals/psp/84/2/377/

http://roa.sagepub.com/content/28/2/163.short

 

Health Benefits of Prayer

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Beautiful Summer GirlAcross cultural and religious backgrounds, prayer has been used to provide comfort, support, and healing for those in need. Prayer, can be defined as “a solemn request for help or expression of thanks addressed to God or an object of worship.” Many do not realize that prayer has been widely researched over the years due to its mysterious nature, as well as its beneficial impact. From the definition alone, one can see that prayer could be beneficial through the simple act of giving thanks (for the health benefits of thankfulness please see my blog on the health benefits of gratitude). Prayer can also provide a means for social support, which in itself, is quite beneficial for overall health.

Provided below are 7 health benefits of prayer. In addition to providing these 7 health benefits, I want to add a personal touch. I pray daily, and in the list of people I pray for are my patients. Know that if you have been or are a patient of mine I have and will continue to pray for you. I have seen firsthand the health benefits of prayer: I have seen healing from trauma, pain, anxiety, depression, and concerns in pregnancy. As a result, I consider prayer a type of complementary and alternative therapy (CAM therapy). I hope that this list of health benefits motivates you to consider prayer as a type of complementary therapy to your health regime.

Prayer can:

  1. Prolong survival of cancer survivors and chronic illness sufferers.
  2. Decrease pain scores.
  3. Decrease blood pressure.
  4. Improve immune functioning.
  5. Improve mental health parameters including more optimistic life orientation and lower levels of anxiety.
  6. Increase perceived social support and higher resilience to stress.
  7. Increase healing speed.

Have you benefitted from reading this blog? Know someone that would benefit as well? Share, Like, Comment, or Tweet this article, and let me know what you think.

Some of the information provided above may not be appropriate for everyone, please consult with your doctor before trying any of the above. If you are interested in Naturopathic Medicine and wanting a different approach to your health care needs, contact Elisha Cook via the contact portion of this website.

Sources

 

Identity Crisis in Health

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Talking to mirrorMany do not realize the large impact that one’s mental health has on their physical well – being. I begin this blog by saying this, because it is so important that we understand how impactful our mental health is on our overall health. If you believe you will not get any better, chances are you will not. However, if you believe that you will get better, and hope for that, chances are you will get better or feel better overall.

Though this does not apply for all cases, many a time I have seen what I call an “Identity Crisis” in health, which has a negative impact on one’s healing. Generally an identity crisis would consist of an individual not knowing who their true self is. What I define as an Identity Crisis in Health is where one identifies with their disease, and not their true self. So, for example, someone may say and identify with “I have Arthritis” as opposed to “I am Jane”. This may sound very strange, and you may be saying, “even if I had arthritis I would say my name is Jane, so what are you talking about?”

In some cases, individuals may get burdened with a condition or ailment that they suffer from. This can lead to depression and entering into a state of acceptance of this condition and one’s current quality of life. This state is often accompanied by thoughts of “I will never get better” and “there is no hope for me”. This can result in an Identity Crisis, where one begins to identify with that condition and accept the terms of that conditions. This can be problematic for some as it begins to alter how they live their lives and change how they relate to others. One may not want to do activities that they used to enjoy, without even trying, simply because they have a condition. The identity crisis can also impact how you feel about yourself and what you may say towards yourself (For more information regarding self-talk, please see my previous blog Positive Self-Talk, which explains how self-talk can impact you).

Though this state may seem harmless, it can impact an individual’s road to recovery. For some, it is hard to think of yourself as anyone but an individual with arthritis for example. It may be hard to imagine life as an individual outside of this condition. As a result, successful recovery may only come from an appropriate treatment plan in addition to changing your thought process. I often encourage individuals to believe that they have control and they can have a choice as to what they think. It takes a lot of effort and it is not easy, but it is possible with time and self – discipline. Focusing on the solution, where you will end up, and the state you hope to be in, may be more beneficial then continuing to think in previous ways that you have. And so, I challenge you to be the optimist and believe in recovery and hope for it. Challenge the thought that “you will never get better”, and start thinking “I can defeat this”. Do not let your condition define who you are and rob you of your true self.

Have you benefitted from reading this blog? Know someone that would benefit as well? Share, Like, Comment, or Tweet this article, and let me know what you think.

Some of the information provided above may not be appropriate for everyone, please consult with your doctor before trying any of the above. If you are interested in Naturopathic Medicine and wanting a different approach to your health care needs, contact Elisha Cook via the contact portion of this website.