Exploring Laughter Yoga with Noreen

Laughter Yoga: The Free Wellness Practice That Rewires Your Brain with Noreen for Intentional Joy

Discover the surprisingly powerful wellness practice that costs nothing, requires no equipment, and can instantly shift your mood from low to joyful. Join me for a delightfully uplifting conversation with Noreen from Waves Holistic Healing about laughter yoga - and yes, we'll be laughing together!

What You'll Experience:

• The truth about what laughter yoga actually is (spoiler: no yoga poses required!)
• How Noreen discovered this practice during her most challenging life period
• Why laughing on purpose works when your brain thinks it shouldn't
• The science behind endorphins, serotonin, and mood-boosting hormones
• Real laughter exercises you can try right along with us
• How this simple practice can rewire your brain toward positivity

Episode Highlights:

• Noreen's transformation from grief and heaviness to radiating joy
• That pivotal training moment when everything clicked: "I love this, I love my life!"
• Why laughter is truly universal medicine that transcends all barriers
• How COVID connected laughter yogis globally through shared joy
• The ripple effect of choosing joy in your daily life
• Practical ways to bring more intentional laughter into your routine

Perfect for anyone feeling stuck in seriousness, craving more lightness, dealing with stress or low mood, or simply curious about this accessible wellness practice. Noreen's warmth and infectious enthusiasm prove that sometimes the most profound healing comes through the simplest acts of purposeful play.

Warning: You may find yourself smiling just from listening - and that's entirely the point!

00:00 Introduction - What on earth is laughter yoga?
01:00 Spoiler alert: It's not actually yoga!
03:00 Noreen's journey - finding joy in dark times
05:00 That life-changing training moment
07:00 Why your brain resists laughing on purpose
08:00 The science behind feel-good hormones
10:00 How laughter creates connection and community
13:00 Global laughter connections during COVID
15:00 DEMO TIME: Laughter exercises you can try!
20:00 The ripple effect of choosing joy
22:00 Bringing laughter into workplaces
24:00 Finding laughter yoga sessions near you

Connect with Noreen:

https://www.instagram.com/wavesholistichealing/

https://www.facebook.com/wavesholistichealing.co.uk

https://www.wavesholistichealing.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/noreen-gormally-waves-holistic-healing-0211a8170/

Thanks for listening.

Transcript

Laughter Yoga with Noreen

​[00:00:00] 

Sarah: Have you ever noticed how contagious laughter is? How hearing someone else laugh makes you curious about what's so funny and makes you want to join in? What if that natural response could become a powerful wellness tool? Welcome back to Exploring Ways to Wellness.

Today I'm joined by the wonderful Noreen from Waves Holistic Healing to explore something that might sound a bit mad at first. Laughter yoga. Don't worry. No downward dogs required. Noreen will explain exactly what this practice involves and why it's nothing like a traditional yoga, despite its name.

She'll share her own discovery story how she found this practice when life [00:01:00] felt particularly heavy. And how it completely transformed her relationship with joy. You'll discover why laughing on purpose might feel weird at first, but works so powerfully. The science behind those feelgood hormones we'll be accessing.

And how this simple practice can rewire your brain towards more positivity. We will even try some exercises together because sometimes you have to experience something to really believe in it. If you've been feeling weighed down, forgotten how to be playful, or are simply intrigued by the idea that healing might come through the most unexpected action.

This conversation will open your mind to some delightfully joyful possibilities. Fair warning, you might find yourself smiling just from listening, but that's exactly [00:02:00] the point.

Sarah: I am thrilled that we have Noreen with us today from Waves Holistic Healing, and she's going to be talking to us about Laughter Yoga, and I'm a little bit excited about this one, as you can probably tell.

So welcome, Noreen. 

Noreen: Thank you. Thank you for inviting me, along to do this podcast. I'm really excited to share what I love and yeah, just to let people know about laughter yoga, wellness. 

Sarah: Yeah, fantastic. It's popped up a couple of times on either events that I've been to or posters I've seen for things.

And I've always been really intrigued. What on earth is laughter yoga? Will you help me? 

Noreen: Yeah. Most people see laughter yoga, and they think it's yoga. And then where does the laughter come in? Maybe doing the positions. And I mean, [00:03:00] yoga is a, a beautiful practice in itself, but this is not yoga.

This is laughter yoga wellness as I call it. And, um, it's laughing on purpose. And hacking into those feel good hormones that is really good for your body and just makes you feel good, makes you feel great. And it encompasses breath work. Okay. Uh, movement, playfulness. So yeah, it's quite a lot of things kind of in one.

So it really helps with lots of different areas of, of wellness and yeah, it's, uh, just a, a wonderful thing to do and it's just, like I say, it's laughing on purpose. And it just makes the body and the mind just feel great. 

Sarah: Amazing. So is it literally you just all. Get together and start laughing? Or like, are there particular exercises as part of it?

Noreen: Yeah it's kind of got a little bit of a sequence where we have the laughing and kind of introducing what laughter feels like in the body, what the [00:04:00] laughter sounds are, and then we have them clapping as well. Okay. Which kind. Uh, the laughter, what we call the laughter exercises, and then we do some breathing in and breathing out.

So it has a little bit of a, you know, a, a routine with it and you can kind of like. Choose that routine or just do these laughter exercises and some breath work so you can kind of change it around and mix it up just to kind of make it a bit more interesting and get people engaged. But yeah, so we've got the laughing on purpose.

The laughter exercises is the playfulness that brings out that laughter in you and is really leaning into that kind of childlike play that we all forget that we can still do, you know, even as adults. And the breath work is just bringing balance after doing the laughter. So you are not right up there all the time.

It is, and that's a beautiful way of. Discovering how to bring your own [00:05:00] regulation, your own balance. If you're feeling up here or you're feeling down there, the breath is your anchor. Um, yeah. So it's, it's all part of, of the laughter yoga wellness. Yeah. 

Sarah: Amazing. And how on earth did you get into something like this?

Noreen: Well, it's through my own wellbeing. My finding ways to make myself feel better. Um, I was going through a difficult stages in my life with, I'd lost my mom. I was still grieving for many, many years. I wasn't dealing with that. I was holding onto that for a long time. And, um, that was impacting on my work.

Um, I worked as a TA. I just started looking for ways to just make myself feel better. And my dad was, uh, diagnosed with dementia at this particular time. I thought, well, if anything, I need a bit more laughter in my life. I need a bit more [00:06:00] joy. I was fed up of feeling low and sad and, you know, just not good.

And, i'd left my job at this point. And so it made me kind of look more to, well, what, what could I do to help myself? And I've seen this training of laughter yoga. And I was like, what's laughter yoga like again, is it yoga? Am I gonna do this and that? But then I've seen these videos, I'm like, these people are just laughing.

They're being playful. They're they're all connected. They're just having a beautiful time. I want some of that. I need some of that. Yeah. And so, um. I discovered that the, there was a lady called Lotte Mikkelsen who is United Mind, who was based on London, and she only comes up to Durham once a year.

And within that time of me searching for that, there was a two days training coming up. Couple of weeks after I'd discovered it, it's like, well, what's the chances of that? And I thought, you know what? I'll just go and do this training and uh, see [00:07:00] how it feels. I've kind of done wellbeing with the children that I work with at the school, so it kind of felt the right way to go.

And I did the training for it and since then it's just been part of my life. And that was 2018. Yeah, 

Sarah: Amazing. And what did you think when you started the training? Were there any particular experiences you had that made a difference to you? 

Noreen: Yeah. And I, I think, um, when I, when I first started doing it, it was like, you know, your brain will automatically go this is not how it's supposed to be.

You know, when you, when you, uh, laugh, it's when somebody tells a joke or something's funny or you with friends. So the laughing on purpose, I was like, oh, your brain was kind of a little bit resistant to it. But by the second day, you know, and connecting with. You know, all these other people. Um, we were doing the laughter exercise and I had this moment where I was like, I love this.

I love my life. This is brilliant. Wow. And I just [00:08:00] felt this euphoric kind of feeling of freedom, of joy. And just in that moment was a, what I always call a shift in how I was seeing the world, how I was seeing myself, um, and. Yeah, those moments don't come often, and there can be big moments or there can be little moments, but that was my turning point, most likely to be where I am today with what I'm doing.

So I'm really grateful for that. I allowed myself to enjoy that moment. 

Sarah: It sounds like such a release as well. I don't, I dunno why we put these kind of barriers up to what we can and can't do in order to relax. But as you say, it's going back to being a child and just enjoying f or the sake of enjoying really, isn't it?

Noreen: Yeah. Like allowing yourself to enjoy the moment without worrying about what other people think. Um, I think as you as, as I've [00:09:00] got older, that's less and less. And it does give you that, that beautiful freedom to allow yourself to be in the moment you allow yourself to, um, show up as you are and not have to pretend to be somebody else.

Or finding a way to fit in with a group or with. With other people. I think, you know, as I, as I've got older and with the laughter yoga, whether it's like rewiring how I see the world, how I see myself, it's definitely given me that, that sense of freedom without the fear of judgment, I. 

Sarah: Yeah. Yeah, it sounds like it.

Yeah. And it works. It's not just on a, a kind of theoretical level, is it? There's even the science behind this. 

Noreen: Oh, yeah. The science behind it and, and people connect with it in different ways, whether it's the science side of it, whether it's like. Giving them them a spiritual experience. And so there's something in there for everybody to connect with.

And the science part of it is that it does [00:10:00] release, um, endorphins into the body and they are responsible for helping you feel good, feel great. It gives you that serotonin which lifts your mood, the dopamine oxytocin, which makes you feel safe and loved. And it's the, it's just beautiful way of.

Of being in control sometimes of how you are feeling. And sometimes we always say that, you know, sad things happen and that's okay. And you've gotta feel the feelings, but you don't wanna be carrying that with you all the time. You don't wanna relive an experience constantly, go back. And it's a way of kind of like, well, I'm feeling that feeling, but I don't wanna go to that place and relive that experience.

And this is a way of giving you that little bit of lift to maybe cope better, maybe feel more hope, maybe feel just good in your own body to be able to deal with whatever life is [00:11:00] throwing at you at the moment. And it's a brilliant tool to use and it's so simple. Yeah, no, 

Sarah: you don't need any apparatus or anything.

It's just that kind of catching yourself, I guess, and then, and then knowing that , you can use it, does it to some extent link into sound therapy as well? A little bit. You're hearing the laughter as well as your making the sound, sound. 

Noreen: It's so beautiful when, if you sit and you hear like children laughing or friends laughing together, you know, you, you we're curious.

beings we want to know. Well, they're laughing at that. That sounds so good. I would love to be part of that. And this is where the connection comes in, that it brings connection when people laugh together, when people at work and they laugh together and they have that environment, that positive, joyful experiences at work, it really helps them work well.

They connect well, they understand each other better. So yeah, definitely. That's quite an [00:12:00] exciting 

Sarah: thing, isn't it, to think if it's could be brought into a corporate environment Yeah. Where you just have some time out to kind of raise the energy back up again.

Noreen: Workplaces, you know, can be dull places, people, doing the nine to five and, and that's okay.

But just having that moment at work to go right, let's lift the energy a little bit and giving people opportunities to say, work isn't the be and end all of your life. There is more experiences out there for you to lean into. And it gives time for people to reflect on, well, what do I need?

Maybe I need something different. Maybe I need something to make life less dull and more exciting, more enjoyment, more peaceful, whatever they need at that particular time. Yeah. 

Sarah: And do you find that then has sort of a ripple effect of kind of them feeling happier and good about themselves [00:13:00] that affects people around you and then what the experiences you're then open to?

Yeah. Gets the ball rolling in a positive way. It, 

Noreen: it does. Yes. I've, I mean, from my own experiences, how I'm showing up has a positive impact on the people that around me, and I don't mean that in an egotistical way or anything like that. I'm just saying that I am noticing that when I am, show that joyfulness side of me or just that kindness and, you know, those positive attributes of just being a human. We're not always love and light, but we, we do our best. But, um, I just noticed that that does have an impact on the people around me. And it's a beautiful thing to see people smile, see people laugh, see people connect.

And in that, in within groups as well, you know, you see that that person would feel lifted, that has a positive effect on the next person. Those people [00:14:00] go home, that has an impact on their families and the people that they meet. And it just continues and it has a massively ripple effect on how you are feeling and how you are showing up is impacts the people around you.

So. Yeah, share the love, share that. That'd be 

Sarah: amazing if we could, yeah. If we could pass that on, you know, round the world because there's, there's plenty of people could really, um, do with some more positive feeling at the moment. 

Noreen: Yeah. You were saying about round the World. I remember during COVID time that, um, I was connecting with other laughter yogis, as we call them, all around the world.

Sarah: And 

Noreen: so, you know, no, no language barrier there with laughter. 'cause laughter is universal and it was a beautiful time to. Lean into laughter yoga when we were probably our worst sometimes of Yeah. What is going on in the world. So, yeah. You know, connecting with people from [00:15:00] Hong Kong and Germany and, France and wherever, all across the globe doing these laughter yoga sessions together and it was just amazing.

So that sounds 

Sarah: definitely 

Noreen: massively. 

Sarah: And is it something that you can do on your own or it it really to be in a group has the best effect? 

Noreen: Yeah, I think with a group it does bring more joy, it brings more energy, but it is so possible to do it for your own practice. Um, I've been sharing my 30 days of laughter where I've been popping a video on every day, wherever I am and whatever I'm doing.

You know, some days I have good days and bad days, and I show that even on the, you don't have to be happy before you do it. You know, you can have these days where you're feeling low and you can. Do some breathing. Have that intention to laugh. Share some laughter. Ha ha, ha ha.[00:16:00] 

I just noticed how it's making you feel. 

Sarah: Yeah. 

Noreen: I was gonna ask 

Sarah: if we could have a little demo 

Noreen: anyway, but yeah. It, it's just a thing and not worry about people around you, you know? Um, I always say like, when you're washing your hair in the morning, do it with a bit of laughter, put some laughter, um, shampoo on and then your hair and go, ha.

And people look at me going, what? What? And or even just sat down and just breathing and doing some laughter. Yeah. And then noticing how that feels, bringing awareness to self, bringing that connection to how you are feeling, and through the laughter, it kind of lifts you through the breathing. It finds balance.

It's just, it's just such a simple, easy [00:17:00] thing, and it doesn't have to be complicated. Yeah. That's beauty of laughter, yoga, wellness, is that it's not complicated. It's what you already have it within you. It's just tapping into it. 

Sarah: Yeah. Oh, that's so beautiful. So if our listeners wanted to get a little, um, taster of what a, laughter yoga session would be like, how do you get started?

Noreen: I. Well, I've got a couple of events, but there, um, there's not many laughter yogi people in the northeast. Um, okay. Um, there are kind of more down, south more than anything. But there are a few of us around, so there's myself and there's a couple of people sort of dotted more, sort of like Northumberland and that kind of area.

But yes, there were laughter yoga clubs around and. There is a couple of laughter, yoga, wellness that I put out every month. Just to try and get people to come along, uh, laugh together, connect even, find new [00:18:00] friendships within that, which is a lovely thing to witness. And it's just a case of coming along and being open.

To what laughter yoga wellness is. 

Sarah: Yeah. Yeah. 

Noreen: And that's the question that I always get. Well, what is it? I'm like, we've gotta experience it to understand it. And I do get a lot of resistance with people because the brain will always say. That's not how it's supposed to be. You know, laughing on purpose.

You know, laughter is associated with comedy. Somebody telling jokes, um, or finding something funny. And the brain will kind of resist something that's not the norm. Yeah, I always say give it a chance, try it again, and yeah, just see how it makes you feel. And I think that's the most important. How does it make you feel?

If it makes you feel good, then you've got something. Yeah. You've got something that you can use however you use that. 

Sarah: It's quite interesting, isn't it, [00:19:00] because you can almost force the laugh to begin with and then realise you are actually laughing. 

Noreen: Yeah, so if, do you wanna do an example of just like, how that would be amazing how I kind of get, get in the zone?

Yeah, yeah, yeah. That 

Sarah: would be fantastic. Thank you. 

Noreen: So, um, it's just taking awareness to yourself and your breath, and then we just take a lovely breath in through the nose, into the belly. So breathing in and breathing out, just noticing the body relax and breathing in again. Breathing out

and thinking about laughter and how laughter sounds. When was the last time that you laughed, you know, what was the experience? So you're bringing that awareness to yourself and that moment of when was the last time you laughed, how did it feel? And having that [00:20:00] intention to recognise that and the intention to try and laugh on purpose. So we take breath in and we're gonna just laugh so breathing in and laugh 

Sarah: ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha

oh, brilliant. 

Noreen: I guess my next question is how do you stop? I know, so you do some clapping and he goes ho ho, ha [00:21:00] ha ha. So you go ho ho ha ha ha

We do that three times, and then we give ourselves a very good, very good, yay. 

Sarah: Oh, I love it. 

Noreen: And then this is when we, the breathing comes in to find balance. So we breath it again, breathing in, breathing out,

breathing in, and. And then just sit with it for a moment. Notice the sensations, the feeling. No right or wrong way, just your way. Just enjoy moment. 

Sarah: I love it. I love it. Thank you so much, Noreen, that I'm sure I won't be the only person that's listening thinking, yeah, I [00:22:00] could do this on a daily basis. I need a bit more, need more laughter in 

my life.

Yeah. 

Noreen: And, and the playfulness side of it is to try and get the laughter. People don't find it easy to just go, ha ha ha ha. And as I've obviously experienced this more, the wiring in my brain finds it so much easier to laugh. The more you laugh, the easier you find laughter comes to you. 

Sarah: Yeah. That's, 

Noreen: it's that totally rewiring in how you are feeling, how you show up, how you, how you laugh.

I, I laugh all the time, you know? Um. When, you know, when I'm with other people, I, I see, I look, you know, like when you see an orange car or you're thinking about an orange car and you always see an orange car. Yeah. No matter where you are, the more you kind of lean into laughter, the more you notice the things that make you laugh, the more good, you know, the more things that you, that you see bring you joy.

Uh, it's like a totally rewiring on, uh, like a positive [00:23:00] rewiring in the brain on. Looking at things in a negative way is less. And the path of looking at things in a more positive moving forward way, laughter is taking me down that path. Definitely more so the playfulness side of it is really important for people to engage in it.

So we do this thing called, um, laughter shake. So we get two canisters like this and we go, whoop, you wanna do it with me?

And then give it a little shake,

and then we're gonna drink the laughter shake after 3, 2, 1, and then laugh three. Two, three. two, one,[00:24:00] 

and then it's the clapping and then the breathing. And it's just the experience. And if you do that with a group of people and you're all looking at each other going, what we doing doesn't matter because it makes us feel good. 

Sarah: Yeah. Yeah. I love it. That's absolutely amazing. Can you, just to finish off, can you think of any particular experience that you've had with Laughter Yoga that's surprised you or really sticks in your mind as being quite special?

I. 

Noreen: Well, there was that moment in my training of my own experience of, uh, laughter yoga and feeling this freedom, this shift in how I was looking at myself and seeing life in itself. Uh, but just witnessing the people that come to laughter sessions and witnessing their enjoyment and their moments of.

This is great. I love this. I need more of this in my life. And [00:25:00] I think there's been many of those and I feel quite lucky and privileged to be witness to that. To see people letting go, to see people enjoying the moment and connecting with other people. I mean, that is a blessing in itself. 

Sarah: What a, what a way 

to have a job.

That's amazing. 

Noreen: I know. I'm, I'm so lucky and I think, did I find laughter or did laughter find me? 

Yeah. And 

it was there when I needed it most. 

Sarah: Yeah. Yeah. Sounds incredible. Well, I'll be popping all Noreen's details into the show notes, so if you would like to find out more about her laughter yoga sessions or find somebody close by that will be able to help you, I think.

Do you do online sessions as well? 

Noreen: I don't, but that's definitely something that I would like to lean into to make it more accessible for people, um, and, and to reach out to more people about laughter yoga. So I am a woman on a mission to share [00:26:00] more laughter and, uh, hopefully it'll help some. Some, well, lots of people on the way.

Sarah: Yeah. Perfect. Well, I do recommend following her on social media. I have been watching some of your 30 days of laughter and they've been getting me, uh, in the right frame of mind this week. So, um, go and have a look at some of those as well. Follow Noreen and then you'll be able to find out when she does some online sessions or hopefully at an event near you soon.

Fantastic. Thank you so much for being with us today, Noreen. It has been fantastic. I really enjoyed it and, and thank you. Thank 

Noreen: you for having me on here. It is just lovely to share what I love and I always say I share, uh, the passion of laughter yoga wellness, and people just take what they need.

So, uh, that's what it's all about, isn't it? 

Sarah: Yeah, absolutely. Perfect. Thank you so much. 

Noreen: Thank you very much. 

Sarah: I [00:27:00] have to say spending time with Noreen today was like receiving a dose of pure sunshine. I hope you felt that shift in energy just from listening. I certainly did, and if you tried the laughter exercises along with us, you've already experienced firsthand how powerful this simple practice can be.

Key things that resonated with me. Laughter truly is universal medicine that requires nothing but a willingness to be playful. Noreen's transformation from grief and heaviness to someone who finds laughter everywhere shows how this practice can literally rewire our brains towards positivity.

And that beautiful reminder that we don't have to be happy before we start. We can use laughter as a tool to shift our state when we are feeling low. [00:28:00] Who would've thought that deliberately laughing could be so transformative. I loved hearing about how those global connections during COVID proved that laughter really does transcend all barriers.

And the idea that bringing this into workplaces. To lift energy and create connection. I mean, imagine if we had laughter breaks instead of just coffee breaks. The science behind it fascinates me too, how something so simple can release endorphins, boost serotonin, and literally rewire our brains towards more positivity.

But beyond the science, there's something beautifully rebellious about choosing joy, choosing to laugh on purpose. Especially when life feels heavy. I'm genuinely inspired by Noreen's mission to share more laughter in the world. Her monthly laughter yoga sessions in the [00:29:00] northeast of England, sound wonderful and I love that she's planning to make this more accessible through online offerings too.

You'll find all her details in the show notes, including her social media. Where she shares those daily doses of intentional joy. Remember, as Noreen beautifully put it, you already have everything you need within you. Sometimes the most profound wellness tools are the simplest ones.

We just need permission to be playful again. Until next time, take care of yourselves. And remember, there's many paths to wellness and sometimes. The best medicine really is laughter, no prescription required.