Laughter Really Is the Best Medicine

Sometimes the best and healthiest way to deal with adversity is to laugh through it. Not to laugh at it, or ignore it, but to keep your sense of humor and seek out others who can help to lighten your load. When you're having a rough day, the best thing you can do for yourself is call someone who makes you laugh. Laughter changes your perspective and turns your emotions around.

There is scientific proof of this. Studies have shown that laughter decreases your blood pressure and heart rate, increases oxygen in the blood, strengthens the immune system, and creates an enzyme that protects your stomach from stress. There is no greater stress inducer than adversity. Laughter is like a pressure valve; it helps release the pent-up anxiety that keeps us from moving forward. The most successful people are able to let most of that anxiety go and handle adverse situations calmly and confidently.

Flops are a part of life's menu and I've never been a girl to miss out on any of the courses.

—Rosalind Russell,
actress