Laughter is really good medicine and, if you’ve ever felt the joy of a really good laughfest, you know what I mean. It seems to clear the mind and free the good emotions so that we get a dose of health all rolled into the sound of joy.

Now, researchers are telling us that laughter is actually contagious and that’s interesting because we’ve always known about contagious anxiety. Want a hurt child to not wail hysterically? Be calm and reassuring and contain your anxiety and watch the result in terms of the child’s reactions.

The scientists in London found there’s actually a part of the brain that responds to laughter and it’s the part that helps us mirror other people’s responses to things. Remember the child and the mirroring that went on there? So, here we have a way to spread the joy and our brains help without our even thinking about it.

Related Topics:

• Why Laughter is the Best Medicine
• The Power of Positive Thinking

Technorati Tags: anxiety, panic attacks, laughter

Are you like me, one of those people who dread that trip to the mall to “enjoy” the holiday crush of people trying to get those last-minute holiday chores or purchases put on your “finished” list? Holidays are great and I really like the lights and the songs and the togetherness it brings, but I don’t like the frenzy that often goes with it.

I spoke to a woman in a shipping service the other day and she was just enjoying a few minutes to catch her breath before the next wave of packages came her way. Seems people not only endure the holiday mall rush, they then have to lug the package over to this facility where they have to make out yet more forms and hope it will get to its destination on time.

There is one way you can cut down on all this holiday stress and it’s called the internet. Do you shop online? I do and it has saved me not only trying to go to more stores than I care to when looking for an item or a price, it has saved me time and frustration. I know I’m not alone because internet shopping has become a great new tradition.

For those of us who are short on time, the pressure to get our shopping done adds yet another layer of stress. How much easier to sit at the computer, look at a few websites after doing a search on one of those shopping comparison sites and then zip to the sites. Saves time, compares all the prices and they promise, in many cases, to do the shipping for you at little or even no extra cost and get it there on time for the holiday.

One extra thought: the internet also saves on gas and that’s something we can all appreciate now that the price of gasoline is going up again.

Have a Wonderful Holiday.

Related Topics:

• Tips to do Holiday Shopping the Healthy Way
• Tips for Calming Holiday Emotions

Technorati Tags: stress, holiday, shopping, internet