What we’re about
I invite you all to take a midday break and start each week off with my free, fun, laughter-filled session of Laughter Yoga. My name is Jill Naomi-Russell and I am a Registered Nurse, Certified Emergency Nurse and Certified Laughter Yoga Leader who is dedicated to spreading the joy and health benefits of Laughter Yoga.
Laughter Yoga is a unique exercise concept that teaches anyone and everyone how to laugh for no reason without the use of comedy or jokes. This laughter is initiated through the use of playful laughter exercises that quickly evolve into genuine, contagious laughter.
It is called Laughter Yoga because it combines laughter exercises with deep yoga breathing, resulting in improved oxygenation as well as many other health benefits which I list below. It’s also a great way to practice the art of mindfulness.
Scientific research has proven that both spontaneous and intentional (unconditional) laughter, if sustained, results in a long list of health benefits including, but not limited to: reduced stress and anxiety, decreased cortisol levels, strengthened immune system, improved cardiopulmonary function and my favorite - laughter leaves us feeling happier, healthier and more energized through the immediate release of the feel-good hormones/neurotransmitters: dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin and endorphins.
The Laughter Yoga movement was started in 1995 by Dr. Madan Kataria and his wife, Madhuri, a yoga instructor, in Mumbai, India. Today there are thousands of Laughter Clubs around the world in over 120 countries. I did my initial training with Dr. Kataria and then went on to get my Laughter Yoga Leader Certification through two of his Master Trainers.
To best achieve the health benefits laughter has to be sustained for a minimum of 10-15 minutes. In day-to-day life our laughter is only brief and sporadic, whereas in a Laughter Club the laughter is consistent throughout the entire laughter exercise portion of the Laughter Club session.
The 45-minute MondayFunday Laughter Club includes a brief introduction and warm-up, then 30 minutes of easy, fun laughter exercises. I always include 2 dance numbers to add to the fun. We finish with a 5 minute cool-down and relaxation. So simply put, we laugh to release all our Joy and Wellness powers. We move to promote flexibility, strength and improve cardiopulmonary function. And we perform yoga breathing to stay well-oxygenated. It’s a casual come-as-you-are event that you’re welcome to attend weekly or just occasionally. Feel free to drop-in anytime! No equipment or experience required. All laughter exercises can be done sitting or standing or a combination of both.
The meeting URL: The Zoom Meeting URL will be visible once you sign-up to Attend. So joining the meeting will be easy and convenient for everybody while still protecting us from unwanted Zoom bombers and trolls. The Meeting URL will be the same for all our weekly Quick-Fix Laughter Club and MondayFunday Laughter Club sessions. Feel free to private message me if you have any questions
This is a club for all ages - young children to the advanced elderly. Feel free to have your whole family attend. Family and friends who laugh together, stay together!
We can’t solve all the world’s problems. But we can bring more joy and wellness into our lives by taking laughter breaks and sharing this laughter with new and old friends.
Singer/songwriter/poet/novelist Leonard Cohen once said “Act the way you’d like to be (e.g. happy and healthy) and soon you’ll be the way you act.”
Keep stress away... laugh everyday!
P.S. Stay hydrated by keeping a glass of water handy. And flush your system afterwards by drinking a big glass of water. Hearty laughter is a work-out and very detoxing. Please feel free to sign-on anytime after 11:35am with your videos on or off and enjoy the upbeat music while you're waiting for the Club to start. I then encourage everybody to turn on your videos at noon to get the most benefit from the session :)
