After Nancy Jones attended a laughter exercise presentation with friends, she knew that teaching laughter classes was something she could do – and wanted to do.
Nancy Jones, a.k.a. the “Laughter Lady.”As her mother’s caregiver, Jones spent hours laughing with her mother at jokes and stories that were sent to them. She has experienced the physical benefits of laughter and is now teaching others how to receive those benefits for themselves.
“Bringing joy to people brings joy back to me,” she said.
Jones has been a Certified Laughter Leader since 2008. Although she is affiliated with World Laughter Tour, she works independently. She teaches laughter presentations, which are groups of people laughing away stress with the guidance of a laughter leader. Jones says she has not found one age group that does not like to laugh.
During the laughter presentations, Jones discusses the benefits of laughter: It boosts the body’s immune system, burns calories, improves flexibility, aids sleep and digestion, releases endorphins and reduces stress.
Participants do gentle stretching and breathing exercises to warm up, and then they enjoy laughter exercises with the group. After cool-down exercises, they learn about Good Hearted Living, which teaches people how to bring more fun into their lives and prevents “hardening of the attitudes.”
Jones has taught laughter presentations in various places, from local libraries to senior centers, from churches to television stations. She started a laughter club at the Cayce-West Columbia public library that is free of charge and meets once a month.
“I look forward to the laughter club at the library because we always have a lot of children in the group with their parents,” Jones said. She says she has a goal to pair local elementary students with an assisted living facility to form a joint laughter club.
Participants enjoy a fun activity at a library laughter club.Some unusual things have happened to her while teaching laughter classes. Once, a participant brought her dog and helped the pet clap along with the rest of the class. Jones said they even entered the dog’s name onto the sign-in sheet.
In another instance, the participants made pretend milkshakes as part of a laughter exercise. One lady pretended to spill her milkshake all over herself and the other participants helped her “clean up.” “There are always surprises,” Jones said.
Jones, who attends Oakwood Baptist Church in Lexington, says being “The Laughter Lady” is the best job she has ever had. No surprise, Proverbs 15:13 is her favorite verse: “A happy heart makes the face cheerful.”
For more information: nancy@thelaughconnection.com.