Regular laughter classes at The Place, Sherwood on the first Tuesday of the month
And The Art Organisation, Station St, on the second and third Wednesday of the month
Andy why not check out this:
Laughter Club feature in the Nottingham Evening Post
Or Jo Eadie's website
Or read more about us:
John Hipkiss says:
After spending several years in the boring planet of IT sales I decided to jet off to Planet Laughter. I had developed an interest in alternative therapies as I have seen them benefit someone close to me. I've always had a good sense of humour and when my girlfriend bought me a clowning course called 'How To Be An Idiot' course for christmas 07 I felt I was entering a new vocation. On this course I met Jo and soon became friends as we shared a good sense of humour and fun. On the course I learnt how to clown, improvise and not be self conscious whilst running from one side of the room to another impersonating a parsnip!
Jo told me
that he'd just trained and started doing some laughter
workshops.
I asked him what it was and he told me that I really had to attend
one to understand. I guess this sounds a bit like trying out
a
new dish at a restuarant you've never heard of - maybe a Roast Goat
Pie or something. Fortunately it turned out to be alot more
fun
than eating something like a Roast Goat Pie! I was introduced to a
world where it's ok to get things wrong, feel comfortable being
extremely silly and spontaneous. We did games, some
improvisation, laughter yoga (which is far more fun the normal yoga
as it makes you laugh alot more!) and laughter meditation.
Although sometimes it takes a while to get your laugh going at first,
you do eventually find yourself naturally laughing at a silly action
or yoga laugh (one of which involves laughing like lawnmowers and
celebrating their existence!). I attended a few sessions -
every time I went I met new people, made some friends and had a
really good time. I'd go home feeling liberated and uplifted.
Jo seemed to be generating a lot of interest in laughter
around Nottingham so I thought I'd love to help him spread some
laughter and joy throughout the county. Therefore I did the
same course 'Laughter Facilitator Training' in London run by a
national organisation called The
Laughter Network
that has many years
of experience running laughter sessions and training new
recruits.
Since then I have helped Jo run some of his sessions, done some
sessions for charity and various organisations. My
plans for 09 are to work with a range of organisations including
corporate, spas,
care homes, health groups and charities. Laughter can also be used as
an effective tool for teambuilding and I run bespoke sessions with a
focus on agreed teambuilding objectives.
On this exciting
journey so far I have taken alot of pleasure in helping people laugh
and feel a sense of well being. I look forward to meeting you
at one of our sessions and greeting you with a warm laugh.
Jo Eadie says:
I believe that we can all learn to be happier than we already are, and I see laughter as a key part of developing a happier approach to life. Until I went to my first laughter workshop, I never thought of myself as someone who laughed a lot. But as soon as I found out how much laughter was locked inside me, jusr waiting to come out, I reliased that I wanted to make a career out of helping other people to make the same discovery.
I have a background in community work and health promotion, and have also taught for the Open University since 1995. I've written widely on sexuality and health, and in 1999 I completed a PhD looking at the relationship between emotions and the body. I'd call myself a patient and enthusiastic teacher, who believes that everyone is capable of developing new skills and abilities.
I run regular courses teaching happiness skills and developing the capacity of adults to play more. In January 2008 I launched the Nottingham Laughter Club, which has been bringing monthly laughter to the East Midlands. With John now on board, I'm expecting to see laughter become an ever bigger part of Nottingham life! In January 2009 I launched the Milton Keynes Laughter Club, to extend the laughter effect further south.
My laughter work has included tailor-made sessions for the siblings of autistic children, for adults recovering from strokes, and at daycentres for people with learning disabilities. I've organised laughter-based stress-busting events for businesses and for community mental health awareness events. I am currently working with the Healthy Schools Programme, to develop a series of suitable laughter events for teachers and pupils.
Having lived with M.E. for eight years, I have a particular interest in developing gentle laughter workshops for people with illnesses and disabilities, and organise laughter events around the country for local ME/CFS/FMS support groups. Details here.
My laughter workshops are aimed at giving people the skills to laugh more deeply, more easily, and more often whenever they need to in their lives.