Endigar 707 ~ The Gift of Laughter
From the Daily Reflections of February 20;
At this juncture, his A.A. sponsor usually laughs. (Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, page 26).
Before my recovery from alcoholism began, laughter was one of the most painful sounds I knew. I never laughed and I felt that anyone else’s laughter was directed at me! My self-pity and anger denied me the simplest of pleasures or lightness of heart. By the end of my drinking not even alcohol could provoke a drunken giggle in me.
When my A.A. sponsor began to laugh and point out my self-pity and ego-feeding deceptions, I was annoyed and hurt, but it taught me to lighten up and focus on my recovery. I soon learned to laugh at myself and eventually I taught those I sponsor to laugh also. Every day I ask God to help me stop taking myself too seriously.
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Laughter is a way of connecting. Apparently our brains respond to true laughter with a shot of dopamine as a reward for making human connections, which has been a big part of our evolutionary success.
“Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that helps control the brain’s reward and pleasure centers. Dopamine also helps regulate movement and emotional responses, and it enables us not only to see rewards, but to take action to move toward them.” (Psychology Today).
I know that there are social connections that help ensure my survival, strengthen my durability, and point me toward prosperity. The gatherings that help me stay sober are the ones I want to be a safe haven for the dopamine trigger of laughter. Taking myself too seriously will make my brain believe it must hide, and I do not need that fearful isolation. I have often been given AA’s Rule 62 when I am falling prey to morbid self-reflection; “Don’t take yourself too damn seriously.”
Daily Reprieve 
August 6, 2015 at 5:15 am
Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice Philippians 4:4