In most cases, laughter is a physical reaction to something we find funny, although humans can laugh in all kinds of situations, including tense moments, times of relief, and awkward situations. Whether it was a good movie, something your friend said, a tickle fight, or your intrusive thoughts, a good laugh is tough to hide and sometimes comes along with shrieks, snorts and other sounds.
While laughter is deeply tied to cultural indicators like language, upbringing, education and media, it’s hard to pinpoint why exactly people laugh. But what we do know is that laughter is excellent for stress management. You might’ve heard that “laughter is the best medicine”, which turns out to be true for the most part. Among other benefits, laughter can relieve your stress response, soothe tension, lift your mood, and even improve your immune system.
There’s no doubt that more laughter in life is what’s best for us. But it’s not so easy, and real laughter can’t be forced. In this article, we’re going to share tips for laughing more, relaxing, and searching for the humour in everyday life.
Surround Yourself with Humour
One of the best ways to invite more humour into your life is to surround yourself with it. The more humour you invite, the more likely you are to have a laugh – it’s simple. But where do you start?
First, you’re going to need to determine your style of humour. Someone’s style of humour is a self-determined preference for humour that’s dry, sarcastic, silly, or something different. There’s even an official field of study for humour that divides the styles of humour into 4 categories: Affiliative, Aggressive, Self-Enhancing and Self-Defeating.
Once you know what your style of humour is, your next task is to look high and low for content that aligns with your comedic interests and surround yourself with it. Streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime are a great place to start. But there’s plenty more out there on social media. There is an endless amount of niche accounts for unique senses of humour and memes, so make an effort to curate your social feeds with more funny stuff and less of the rest.
Actively Participate in the World of Comedy
Apart from doing your best to surround yourself with laughter, you might need to put yourself out there a bit more for some laughs. If you’re living on the Lower Mainland or another big city, a comedy show is one of the best ways to participate in the world of comedy. At a comedy show, the room will be filled with people ready to have a good laugh – and laughing is contagious.
In Vancouver, there are places like Comedy After Dark, Underground Comedy Club, The Comedy Department and The Improve Centre. In the Fraser Valley, check out Laugh on Tap in Langley, Comedy Night at the Haney in Maple Ridge, Yuk Yuk’s in Surrey, or Last Laffs in Abbotsford.
If you’re having no problem laughing but would like to become funnier yourself, a comedy class is a great way to immerse yourself. If you can stand putting yourself in a vulnerable position to grow, a comedy class is the best way to learn the ins and outs of timing, styles, improvisation, and more.
Try Cannabis Designed for Laughter
Sometimes all you need to have a good laugh is the company of friends and a good strain of cannabis from your local dispensary. The main THC compound found in cannabis is notorious for helping to activate a reflex-like mechanism inside us. All of a sudden, everything is just funnier – even the mundane actives inside of everyday routines. Even when there’s nothing to laugh at in particular, cannabis has a way of putting us in that mood.
Not all strains of cannabis are the same. We know that different strains contain varying levels of THC, CBD and other cannabinoids, which we know to generate different feelings and reactions. At Cheeky’s, we’ve curated a unique line of cannabis strains designed especially for laughter. We call it ‘CBG’, or our ‘Giggles’ product line. These strains are designed for more social experiences, light-hearted moments and plenty of laughter.
Visit Cheeky’s in Maple Ridge or Kitsilano to check out our selection and talk with our friendly staff for some help finding a strain.
Be Open to Humour All Around You
In everyday life, humour is all around us. The people we interact with every day are funny, we just have to be open to the possibility of humour. Our pets can be funny too. And if you’re willing to not take yourself so seriously, you’ll discover you’re pretty funny as well. From our thoughts to our predictable routines and interesting decision making, we create plenty of laughable moments everyday. So don’t be afraid to laugh at yourself.
Humour can be found in almost anything, it just requires an intentional effort on our end. People that look for humour in life often find it. Ask yourself, “what’s funny about this situation?”. If you’re open to it, you’ll catch yourself laughing at the smallest things.
If you need help finding a laugh, stop by Cheeky’s Cannabis in Maple Ridge or Kitsilano. We have an expertly curated selection of cannabis that includes our CBG line especially designed for laughter. Come say hi or browse our online store today.