Sample Outline for 20-Week Paper

Title: The Healing Power of Laughter

Thesis: Laughter has been proven to improve health and make people live longer.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to inform the reader about all the positive effects laughter can have on a person’s health.

I. Introductory Paragraph: A. Thesis Claim: There is so much power in laughter and so many ways to use it to improve one’s health. Studies have shown that laughter strengthens the immune function, decreases stress and helps everyone to not live life too seriously.

B. Forecasting of Key Points of the paper: 1. First, studies have shown that laughter strengthens the immune system and can improve one’s health. 2. Second, laughter has been shown to decrease the amount of stress. 3. Third, and finally, laughter helps all of us to not live life so seriously.

II. Body of the Paper: A. First, laughter strengthens the immune system and improves one’s health. 1. A good belly laugh increases production of T-Cells, interferon, and immune proteins called globulins (Smith 12). 2. Many reports have hailed laughter and humor to be beneficial in restoring homeostasis (balance) in bodily functions, stabilizing of blood pressure, oxygenation of blood, stimulation of vital organs and improving circulation, facilitating of digestive processes, and inducing relaxation. Well-documented studies correlate the benefits of laughter with improved heart rate and respiration (Duncan 14-18). 3. Laughter aids ventilation and helps clear mucus plugs, which is good for respiratory conditions like emphysema (Bissell 30). B. Second, laughter has been shown to decrease stress levels 1. Laughter's relation to longevity has been noted by W.F. Fry, Jr., a behavioral scientist and clinical psychiatrist. He has reported that people who displace anger, anxiety, and hostility with a sense of humor often live longer lives (Hynes). 2. Endorphins are chemically related to opiates, such as morphine and heroin, and act to reduce pain and generate feelings of well-being. They are produced in the body to reduce stress and pain, but are also regarded as effective in contributing to a sense of euphoria (Terrell 45). 3. According to the New England Journal of Medicine, laughing increases pain Tolerance (Blake 47). 4. Stress increases blood pressure, but laughter reduces it. Stress depresses the immune system causing a person to be more susceptible to illness, but laughter elevates it. Stress also affects sleep, creating patterns of insomnia, laughter can cure it. Stress lowers our energy levels (physical, mental, emotional), whereas laughter picks them up (Villa 63-66). 5. It is well known that a good laugh does you good, because every time you laugh you exercise 17 different muscles in your face, it increases oxygen levels in the body and releases endorphins (feel good hormones) around your body. It brings a sense of freshness into your home or workplace, costs nothing and is one of the best stress relievers known. In medical terms it is called “eustress” because it has the opposite effects to stress (Dunn 33).

C. Third and finally, laughing helps all of us to not live life too seriously 1. People who can laugh at their own problems rise above the pit of self-pity; they begin to feel uplifted, encouraged, and imbued with a sense of power (Mastro). 2. Comedy writers know the power of humor. So do comedians and cartoonists. Interviews with these professionals often reveal that the practitioners are usually people susceptible to depression but manage to ward off their moodiness by joking about their difficulties. It is a gainful way of grasping power over their problems (Your Source). 3. Instead of watching films or television dramas that drain and depress your spirit, choose something that can put a smile on your face and feed your healthy emotions (Your Source). 4. "Charlie Chaplin, too, found solace in humor," Klein recounts. Raised in the slums of London, he was five years old when his father died of alcoholism; after that his mother suffered insanity. Chaplin used these gloomy memories in his comedy (Your Source).

D. Recognizing and Addressing the Opposing Side 1. Some medical professionals dismiss the notion the laughter is effective as others in the field portray (Your Source). 2. Patients who suffer from certain diseases have seen no affect from an exposure to laughter/humor during treatment (Your Source).

III. Concluding Paragraph:

A. Review the Key Points: This paper presents three main points. They are: 1. First, studies have shown that laughter strengthens the immune system and improve one’s health. 2. Second, laughter has been show to decrease the amount of stress. 3. Third, and finally, laughter helps all of us to not live life so seriously.

B. Representation of Thesis Claim. : There is so much power in laughter and so many ways to use it to improve your health. Studies have shown that laughter, strengthens immune function, decreasing stress and helps everyone to not take life too seriously.