Laugh in the Face of Anxiety

Anxiety occasionally visits us all. When we give an important presentation, take a test, go on a first date or walk down a dark alley our minds and bodies naturally respond by going on high alert and attuning to the potential dangers and risks of these endeavors. A healthy amount of anxiety prevents us from falling victim to those dangers and risks. Choosing not to go down that dark alley could be a life-saving response. But an excessive amount of anxiety can increase our risk of suffering negative consequences. The millions of people who suffer from social anxiety disorder, panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder and other anxiety disorders experience debilitating degrees of anxiety and fear that can significantly limit their functioning in daily life. The natural instincts designed to help protect them from the dangers they fear have become sources of danger themselves. Humor is a useful tool for the anxious to use to gain a new and more clear perspective on their worries. Humor has the power to transform the frightening into the funny through the reappraisal process. Conscious reappraisal of a situation has a direct impact on our brain and its functioning. John Gabrieli and other researchers at Columbia University and Stanford studied the power of reappraisal by having subjects look at a picture of a patient in a hospital bed and imagine themselves as the patient. They were instructed to imagine that they, as this patient, had been ill for a long time and had lit...
Source: Psych Central - Category: Psychiatry Authors: Tags: Anxiety Creativity Amygdala Humor Laughter Neuroscience Source Type: news