More than 70 percent of the 30 cancer patients in a laughter yoga program reported sleeping better, experiencing less pain and feeling less depressed after taking some classes, Taichung Hospital said recently.
Laughter yoga teaches people to laugh hard, which increases endorphin release, helps improve their emotional well-being, enhances their immune system, and reduces inflammation and stress hormones, said Liao Chih-Ying (廖志穎), director of the hospital’s radiation oncology department.
Liao, who introduced laughter yoga from the US to the hospital in October last year, said most cancer patients experience different degrees of post-traumatic stress disorder, with about 40 percent suffering depression, anxiety, insomnia or chronic stress when they experience pain or are undergoing treatment.
Photo: Tsai Shu-yuan, Taipei Times
The increase in stress hormones, adrenaline and inflammation-
related genes also weaken their immune system, allowing cancer cells to become more aggressive and enhancing the risks of cancer metastasis, he said.
Laughter yoga leads to the release of endorphins and fake laughter can gradually become real laughter through constant practice, he said.
The endorphins can help relieve stress, improve their mood and immune system, and even prevent the recurrence and spread of cancer, he added.
The hospital invited yoga teacher Lai Ching-ju (賴晴如) to give a one-hour class to cancer patients every week, and after two months, about 70 percent of the participants reported improvements in their problems with sleeping, pain, fatigue, anxiety and depression.
A 48-year-old woman surnamed Hsieh (謝), who owns a cram school and teaches English and essay writing, said she used to work more than 10 hours a day, but was seldom sick, so she found it hard to believe after she was diagnosed with breast cancer last year.
She underwent surgery and chemotherapy, and suffered from depression and bipolar disorder, losing about 10kg in six months because of the side effects of the treatment. She often locked herself in a room crying, throwing things around, slamming her body against the wall and collected sleeping pills as she contemplated suicide.
When the hospital’s volunteers invited her to attend the laughter yoga class, she could not laugh at all at first. However, by starting first with fake laughs, playing games and practicing meditation, she was able to laugh from the heart during the second class and gradually laughed harder, regained her appetite and continues practicing at home.
She imagined her body completely recovered, read jokes on the Internet and has become truly happy, always greeting people with a smile, Hsieh said.
Laughter yoga has helped improved her relationship with her family and encouraged her to travel, Hsieh said, adding that she has learned to be grateful to the sickness that has turned her life around.
A restaurant owner surnamed Wang (王), who was diagnosed with Stage 3 gastric cancer two years ago, had to have two-thirds of his stomach removed, and went through electrotherapy and chemotherapy. Wang said he thought he was “almost about to die” because he could not eat anything.
He said he was always in low spirits, but later thought he might as well try laughter yoga as a last resort.
“I found out that I wanted to laugh as much as I could, to laugh away the cancer cells and that I would rather die laughing than crying,” Wang said.
“Now, I feel happy all the time, doing volunteer work, Chinese calligraphy, practicing taichi and living an enriched life,” he added.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as