The Laughter Quotient is a mathematical equation that is The Science of Laughter. To date laughter has not officially been used as a therapy even though it is very therapeutic. The Laughter Quotient was created to be able to administer laughter in the same way as a medicine.
The Laughter Quotient is focused more on helping to make people “not sick”, rather than make them well, hence the therapy angle. It can however effectively be used for health purposes. When used in this manner it is more like an exercise program.
When we hear someone’s laugh, we say that we like it, or not, based on how it resonates with us. This is because of the authenticity of it, which is of course very subjective. With the Laughter Quotient we can help people to identify what’s not working with their laugh. We use the four elements to bring the person closer to a laugh that sounds good. We then analyze it on a sound recording graph to see how it looks, and then ask the person how it feels. In summary if it sounds good, and looks good, then it invariably feels good.
Here are 5 things to help find your authentic laugh using the Laughter Quotient.
- Length. If a laugh is too short there is not enough air expelled. If it’s too long then it can strain muscles. Just before you laugh ensure that you breathe into your stomach first. This is important to have enough air to breathe (laugh) out. You need to start with the stomach muscles (first stage of breath exhalation) followed by the chest muscles (second stage of breath exhalation).
- Repetition. So we have laughed out once, but that will never be enough to obtain the benefits of laughter. It will need to be replicated over a minute with the inclusions of an in breath. Four cycles per minute is the optimum number.
- Over a period of time. All exercise is based on the length of the exercise routine. General thinking is that exercise has to be performed for around thirty minutes three times a week. So that’s how long the length and repetition should go for. A laughter session at a Laughter Club provides just that.
- Volume. When we exhale and make a noise, it requires the throat to constrict and bring the voice folds together to vibrate between 150 and 200 times per second. This is how we talk. The same is true for laughter as laughter is a form of verbal communication. The volume comes from the intensity of the air forced by the diaphragm past the voice folds.
- Pitch. The pitch of your laughter is determined by the position of your voice box that requires constriction of your throat muscles. A higher pitched laughter means that the muscles are working very hard, and a low pitch means that they are relaxed. Somewhere in the middle is where they need to be to ensure that the third stage of exhalation is achieved from the throat.
If you have any further questions regarding the Laughter Quotient then please feel free to email me at merv@mervneal.com at any time.
Merv Neal is a Laughter Yoga Master Trainer, CEO of Laughter Yoga Australia and New Zealand, and Director of Holistic Services Group. He has successfully owned and operated his own businesses for more than 43 years. He has created a Laughter Yoga Business Training Program, as well as the Business Mentors and Coaches Program, to help others to take laughter to commercial organizations, and/or to create a laughter business of their own. More information can be found at http://www.laughteryogaaustralia.org or https://www.mervneal.com. He can be contacted on 0408552269 or merv@mervneal.com