Laughter Yoga: 5 Exercises to de-stress

Lindsay POUI-DI

26 Feb 2015

updated the 6 October 2015 à 23:21

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1- Adopt a carefree attitude in your life
During your usual morning routine, glancing in front of the mirror:

Begin with a light grimace, then let your face contort and deform as it comes. Let your face become like rubber, stretch it on all sides. Then, brush your teeth as usual and stick out your tongue.
In the shower, sing loudly the Castafiore, out of tune if possible, or in a high-pitched voice.
Once you have finished showering and before leaving the bathroom, try to charm yourself in the mirror. Strike an attractive and irresistible pose!
Try your most beautiful grimace on the first person you see.
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2- Relax in a small group of friends
Meet in the same room, with a pencil, some paper and accessories from each participant (handbag, scarf, glasses, etc.).
Write down one of the participant’s three qualities, something that fascinates him/her and an anecdote that characterises him/her. Do the same for each participant.
Once done, decide who is going to play the role of whom. Then imitate his/her gait, posture and way of speaking.
Continue this exercise for 30 minutes, but be sure to be empathetic and benevolent in your imitation; this is not a malicious exercise, it is all about amusement and laughter.
End by imitating the laughter of your subject, without speaking, for about 10 minutes
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3- Get rid of any public nervousness
Find a nice quiet place where you can make noise. This very effective exercise requires only a few minutes.
Anchor your feet in the ground, hip-width apart, with flexible knees. Lean forward while crying very noisily. Your stomach must be shaken by the cramps of your dramatised sobs.
Rise up slowly to the lumbar vertebrae level, then the dorsal, and finally at the cervical level, by laughing more and more heartily. When your bust is straight again, laugh in a thunderous way, arms stretched above the head.
Repeat this movement three times, then “come on stage” with a determined attitude.
If you need to laugh before your first word, do not resist; laugh! And let the room laugh with you
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4- Defuse your anger
Grab a pillow and find a place where you can make some noise.
Walk energetically while grumbling. Say everything that irritates you, clenched fists, accelerate, dare to make a furious face and express your anger by stamping like a five-year-old child.
Strike the pillow while screaming and breathing loudly, with words and insults, and do not skimp on the energy: hit hard and for as long as you need. If it helps, you can visualise the head of your worst enemy on the pillow.
If tears come, embrace them and cry without restraint, like you did as a child.
Then direct your vital energy to laughter; laugh gradually by submitting your whole body to the motion.
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5- Revive the flame
Each on a side of the bed, tell each other all that is in your heart.
Use an imaginary language, together, without listening to each other. Then, one at a time, as quick as a flash, in order to release all the energy of the unspoken. The content doesn’t matter, only the energy is important.
Play to get angry, always talking gibberish, with fists placed on hips.
When you have released everything, throw yourself into each other’s arms and forgive yourself in the incomprehensible language you chose.
Then, jump on the bed as if you were on a trampoline.
Let you fall on the cover by tickling each other and do whatever comes naturally…!

1- Adopt a carefree attitude in your life

Stress, anger, nervousness… Laughter yoga, developed by the Indian doctor Madan Kataria, helps one approach with serenity the difficulties of everyday life. Here are five exercises that will introduce you to this funny practice.

Martine Medjber-Leignel, psychotherapist, and Joëlle Cuvilliez, journalist, claim that laughing on a daily basis spreads a benevolent spirit, and develops open qualities of generosity and sharing. In the gallery above, five laughter yoga exercises are presented that aim to teach us to laugh at ourselves and with others – for a better life!

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