In 1979, Norman Cousins shared his groundbreaking personal story — a healing journey sparked by joy — in Anatomy of an Illness as Perceived by the Patient, describing how watching Marx Brothers movies helped him recover from a life-threatening tissue disease.

“Is it possible,” he wondered, “that love, hope, faith, laughter, confidence, and the will to live have therapeutic value?” Cousins committed to several hearty belly laughs a day. Just a few minutes of joy gave him hours of pain-free sleep — proof that laughter truly is sunshine for the soul.

“Funny is an attitude,” said comedian Flip Wilson.

Medical studies confirm it: laughter boosts levels of endorphins — the body’s natural painkillers — and suppresses epinephrine, the stress hormone.

According to Arnold Glasgow, “Laughter is a tranquilizer with no side effects.”

Professor Lee Berk, a pioneer in the science of laughter and medicine, found that laughter increases Natural Killer cell activity, enhances B-cell and T-cell production, and strengthens the immune system.

Hearty laughter also exercises the lungs, boosts circulation, and oxygenates the blood. “He who laughs,” said Mary Pettibone Poole, “lasts.”

The time is now to laugh and be happy. You can do it! Let joy bubble up from the inside — loud, honest, and full of light. As scientist Boris Sokoloff said, “Like swimming, riding, writing, or playing golf, happiness can be learned.”