Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Laughter Yoga as a Nursing Intervention, NOVA Publications , ss.81-92, 2026
Laughter is rapidly disappearing in our high-tension world. People are forgetting to laugh amidst endless stress factors such as work, family, economy, career, and illness. However, studies have proven that laughter has a profound effect on the body and mind. Although there are many methods to relieve stress, most of them are time-consuming and expensive. Laughter yoga is cost-effective and the fastest way to reduce stress. The technique itself is simple, and people without pathological problems can easily apply it. Laughter yoga combines unconditional laughter with yoga breathing (pranayama), increasing feelings of happiness and peace in the individual. Due to this feature, laughter yoga is used in many areas, especially in preventing depression and stress and maintaining mental health. One of the periods to pay attention to in maintaining mental health is the postpartum period. The postpartum period refers to the six-week period after childbirth. This period is a transition period for women. Women experience many physical, psychological, emotional, and social changes during this period. Situations such as anxiety and stress due to breastfeeding problems, insomnia, and stress can affect women’s mental health. Therefore, nursing practices aimed at increasing mothers’ coping skills during the postpartum period are important. One of the nursing practices that can be applied during this period is laughter yoga. Endorphin release is stimulated with laughter. At the same time, because dopamine and serotonin levels increase, strong protection against depression is formed in the mother. When the literature is examined, it has been seen that laughter yoga has significant effects on depression, stress, sleep, and mental well-being in the postpartum period. Laughter yoga has been found to be effective in reducing depression rates in mothers with postpartum blues. It has also been proven that laughter yoga applied to postpartum women increases the number of immune cells. Through laughter yoga, it has been found that mothers’ fatigue decreases, sleep quality increases, anxiety levels decrease, and self-confidence levels increase. Thus, mothers in the postpartum period have become stronger in coping with anxiety and depression. Considering all these benefits, it is recommended to increase nurses’ awareness of laughter yoga and include laughter yoga in the nursing care of postpartum women, who are a high-risk group in terms of mental health.