How can we take off our blinders? How can we eliminate tunnel vision to see the whole child? How can we not take everything so seriously? My rmendation is simple—laugh, teachers, laugh!
Psychologists have long believed that negative emotions cause negative chemical changes in the body. We know the opposite is also true. We know that a person with a good sense of humor has better healing qualities. Laughter actually relaxes the muscles, slows the heartbeat, and lowers blood pressure. Laugher stirs the inside and gets the endocrine2 system moving, which can be quite beneficial in alleviating disease. Laughter also relieves boredom, tension, guilt, depression, headaches, and backaches.
Each time you chuckle or “crack up”, your brain releases the body’s natural pain-killing hormones. Those hormones trigger the release of endorphines, natural opiates that can reduce pain. These same hormones are responsible for making the eyes sparkle and getting the brain to work more eriectively. Laughter can produce a great deal of relaxation. When your body is relaxed, the vista broadens, and you can see things you were missing before.