I love watching movies and television shows of all genres, but comedies are my favorite. I love comedies about coming of age, romance, action, dark/suspense, and any other type there may be. Some of the comedic shows I enjoyed watching recently were Average Joe (BET+), The Horror of Dolores Roach (Amazon Prime), The Upshaws (Netflix), Survival of the Thickest (Netflix), and Only Murders in the Building (Hulu). As human beings, having a sense of joy can reduce stress, decrease pain, and improve one’s emotional regulation. With this month being Self-Care Awareness month, this week’s task is to…
LAUGH/SMILE/CREATE JOY
So many of us have increased responsibilities in our day-to-day life that sometimes we forget to sit down and have a good laugh or to smile. There are many people who are dealing with homelessness, health conditions, financial struggles, personal losses, and mental illness; distracting yourself with some type of joy may not be at the top of your list, but finding ways to do so can be the quick therapy that you need to start the path away from the darkness.
The are many ways to work on laughing and smiling that do not include watching shows and movies and they include:
- Build something with your hands: just before the pandemic I began sewing my bags, quilts/throws, and pillows because art was a passion growing up and I found another way to do it.
- Do something you used to love as a child: Recently I bought my own roller skates and engaged once as going to the rink was where my Mother used to take us to growing up. Also for my birthday 2 years ago, I invited a few people to a large park and engaged in various games such as ring toss, egg and spoon race, and 3 legged race along with some others.
- Go sit in the park and people/animal watch: It’s interesting what funny things people and animals do when they think no one’s looking.
- Go to a live show weather music concert, Broadway show, or comedy show: I went to the Summer Block Party concert with Jodeci, SWV, and Dru Hill recently and my voice was gone from singing my heart out along with the groups.
- Connect with a friend/family member on the phone or in person: When’s the last time you spoke to your friend from college, your cousin once removed, or your former co-worker.
- Travel and do something away from your everyday routine: Recently I did horseback riding for the first time since being on pony as a child at a fair.
- Eat your favorite snack/meal: Junior’s Cheesecake anyone?!
- Take an exercise class: Have you every done Zumba or Soul Cycle, sometimes you just need to laugh at yourself trying to keep up with it.
- Play video, card, or board games: I love Uno and War card games as well as Checkers, as I’m very competitive.
- Dance around the house to music you love: Put on the Cha-Cha Slide and slide to the left.
Life is limited as we have a very short time on this Earth and as the saying goes when “Life give you lemons, make lemonade.” Life may be stressful or sour as a lemon, but in the end it’s our job to find our purpose because we were all selected to inhabit this world for a reason. I hope these ideas bring some thoughts into your mind and bring a smile to your face. Let us know if you tried anything off the list or found another way to create joy and care for your self.