What do you think of Norman Cousins's Laughter therapy? Do you think there is any truth to the idea of a mind-body interaction? Have you, or someone you know, had a medical experience where the mind was stronger than the body?

Along with conventional medicine mental attitude plays a key role in the recovery from illness. Norman Cousins’s cure with ‘laugh therapy’ is an amazing case of mind-body interaction. A substantial proof of mind-body interaction was provided by Norman Cousins’s, a writer who, in 1964 was diagnosed with a very serious type of destructive arthritis. He was told that he would die of that disease and the chances of recovering were one in five hundred. The writer had read about the damage caused in the chemistry of human body by negative attitudes and stress, and he thought that it would be a good idea to try the therapeutic effects of positive emotions. In this sense, he tried ‘Laugh therapy’ apart from the conventional treatment. The positive effects of that therapy appeared immediately and Norman Cousins showed a complete recovery after a few years. Today, the interest in humourous effects has grown so much that the medical field has named it psychoneuroimmunology, the study of how psychological factors, the brain and the immune system interact to influence health. Medical researchers have found that laughter boosts the immune system. The study of how behavior and the brain affect the immune system is psychoneuroimmunology. Though still in its infancy, this science is rapidly gaining much attention as humanity strives to understand the mind-body relationship. Discovering the truth behind using laughter as a medicine is beneficial to all. Laughter is a new simple and holistic way of improving one’s life. Optimism and carefree living is the way to stay laughing.