Lots of laughs at the Monastère Chartwell Residence 

 

Hugh Godman

Sylvie Périard, of Gatineau’s School of Laughter Yoga, paid the retirement residence a visit, April 26, in hopes of sharing a laugh with the residents. She led a “laughter yoga” workshop which all dwellers were welcome to join.  

Laughter yoga uses forced laughter as a physical exercise, aiming to reap the physiological and psychological benefits of laughter, which include: improved digestion, sleep, and increased happiness, according to Gatineau’s School of Laughter Yoga. 

As the laughter exercises progress, forced laughter may become real laughter, as participants are pushed out of their comfort zones. Ms Périard says that one’s body cannot tell the difference between forced and natural hilarity—both have the same positive return. 

Throughout the workshop, thanks to Benoit Pernot, the director of food services, residents could enjoy tarts prepared on-site and decorated with fresh berries, kiwi, and carambola.

This Chartwell residence was not alone in spurring the elderly to “release their inner child” as the event’s laugh captain, Sylvie Périard, put it. According to Marc Lafontaine, director at the monastery, on April 26, at exactly 2:30 pm, retirement residences across Quebec worked to get a snicker, a giggle or a grin out of as many of the elderly as possible. It was somewhat of a laughter epidemic.