Laughter and Pain

I read an interesting article in this morning's edition of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. The article, by Paul Harasim, was in the Health section (D) of the newspaper under the feature To Your Health and titled "Cleansing laughter eases pain of loss".

In this article, Mr. Harasim, discusses how laughter can ease both the emotional pain of losing a friend and physical pain. I know, from my own experience with grief, that laughter can ease the emotional pain of lose, because laughter has helped me deal with my mother's death. However, it is the first time I have heard that it helped with physical pain as well.

I am going to try using laughter as a method of dealing with physical pain. I have pain medication, but it has its limits and side effects. I do not like to depend on the medication and I do not take it unless I am in excruciating pain. I have two reasons for being careful about the way I take the pain medication. First, I do not want to become addicted to it. Second, the pain tablets that I use could have an effect on my liver. I will try ten minutes of laughter a day and then at my next doctor's appointment discuss the situation with my doctor.