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Laughter Yoga: A Gentle Movement Practice to Get the Giggles Going

This movement exercise is Elaine Smookler’s foolproof way to induce laughter. It is based on the Hawaiian word “Aloha,” a nice vowel-y word that opens the mouth and throat just by saying it.

Laughter is not just good if you can get it. Laughter is incredibly helpful in building resilience. It releases dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, and endorphins, and also works on our heart, our lungs, our muscles, our thoughts, our behaviors. It helps with fibromyalgia. It helps with insomnia. Laughter is pretty good medicine.

The amazing thing about laughter is you don’t even have to really have something funny to laugh at. We can actually induce laughter as an experience. The body will still release the same endorphins.

Try this laughter yoga exercise to discover a foolproof way to induce laughter. It is based on the Hawaiian word “Aloha,” a nice vowel-y word that opens the mouth and throat just by saying it.

Laughter Yoga: A Gentle Movement Practice to Get the Giggles Going

Read and practice the guided meditation script below, pausing after each paragraph. Or listen to the audio practice.

  1. First, let your chin drop toward your chest and your head hang heavy. Let your upper body follow and drop comfortably. Move in whatever way is manageable for you. Please don’t do more than you can.
  2. Next, focus on the vocal part of the exercise. The body moves downward vertebrae by vertebrae, and you can let yourself just hang. Then, when you’re ready, begin to come up to an upright position. Repeat the vocal exercise: Ah-loooooooooooooooo-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha. Ah-loooooooooooooooo-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha. Ah-loooooooooooooooo-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha.
  3. Repeat this a few more times. Repeat the vocal exercise: Ah-loooooooooooooooo-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha. Ah-loooooooooooooooo-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha. Ah-loooooooooooooooo-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha. Ah-loooooooooooooooo-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha.
  4. Finally, check in with yourself. What did you notice? Maybe you’re feeling like, I ain’t doing that again. Dig in to how you feel now? Did the practice in fact, even if you’re a very serious person, offer you an uplift in your mood. Do you feel a little bit of juice or joy that wasn’t there before? Sometimes inducing something as basic as laughter can be so helpful (especially if you want to freak your colleagues out).

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About The Author

Elaine Smookler

Elaine Smookler

Elaine Smookler is a Registered Psychotherapist (RP) and teacher and was a founding faculty member at the Centre for Mindfulness Studies in Toronto teaching clinical programs including MBCT and MBSR. She also taught Mindfulness throughout the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Medicine, was a founding teacher for the Mindfulness Thinktank at Sick Kids hospital and a longtime faculty member at the University of Toronto’s School of Continuing Studies where she taught her own program, “A Mindful Way through the Creative Process” and part of the certificate program, “Mindfulness Informed End-of-Life Care.”

Elaine has offered mindfulness training to every kind of participant including: parole Officers, the Catholic School Board, Summer Camp Owners, Hair Stylists, Children, Teens, Employee Assistance programs and a broad corporate audience. She is also a guide on the app “Dawn Personalized Cancer Stewardship Program.”

She has a focused psychotherapy practice offering clients support and precise tools to help them find the kindest, gentlest, most successful way forward to meet the difficulties, challenges and obstacles that life is constantly offering up. She also explores mindfulness themes as a key-note speaker, columnist, standup comedian, actor and singer. www.elainesmookler.com

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