Laughter-Filled Tuesday

I ran two laughter sessions yesterday. The morning session was at a meeting of the Harlow Care Co-ordinators. There were 15 participants representing a wide variety of carers groups from disabled children to strokes and the Alzheimer's Society.

Before I ran my segment of the meeting, most of the participants were in a dour mood. The topic under discussion was the raw deal from the caring support services experienced both by themselves and the members of their groups. It seems that the care packages that are so glibly talked about in television dramas are the stuff of fantasy compared to the reality of what is available in Harlow. The issues under discussion are those that are so commonly highlighted by Carers UK: many of the health issues are those that I outlined in a previous post on the varying health costs of caring.

Such experiences and stories are run of the mill for carers. Nonetheless, I do believe that it is worth cultivating a Happystance and learning how to harness the power of positive emotion in our lives. Despite the mood of the participants before the session, our time together was a success, and we tried out a range of laughs. People found that they were able to put aside their present concerns. Everybody joined in the laughtercises after the usual reticence to share positive emotions with strangers in public. The co-ordinators went away with a better understanding of what I am offering with the Happystance workshops.