Review of evening ‘talk’: Laughter Yoga, facilitated by Rae Hurst for HACP

HACP evening talk, 15 July 2025

Well, that was a very different kind of evening talk! I had no idea what to expect and have to admit to feeling a little trepidation beforehand, as I imagined being encouraged outside my ‘comfort zone’ somewhat and I didn’t know what that might feel like.

First Half of Laughter Yoga

The evening began with Rae introducing the concept of Laughter Yoga and listing some of the benefits people experience when engaging with it. We were asked how often we laugh in a day and whether we had laughed earlier that day? I realised that day-to-day, I don’t actually laugh that much!

We started with some warm-up exercises, including stretching and focusing on our breathing and we were invited to make some laughter-type sounds, so we began in this way to find our voices and allow ourselves to be heard by others.

By the time we had a tea-break, there was already quite a buzz in the room, and I noticed more people chatting and mingling than is usual for an evening talk. It felt relaxed and convivial, which was lovely.

Second Half of Laughter Yoga

After the break we took part in a series of short, what I might call ‘silly role play’ sessions, although they were facilitated, with care, by Rae. I know the words ‘role play’ make some people retreat in horror, but actually they were an invitation to play, to be silly, to have fun and to laugh! We told a partner about our day using gibberish, pretended to be at a posh cocktail party again using gibberish and sound rather than recognisable words, pretended to have balloons tied to our ankles and we had to pop other people’s without allowing our own to be popped… My inner child definitely made an appearance as I scampered around!

The evening ended with everyone lying in a circle, with heads towards the centre and most of the group just laughed, giggled and/or smiled, ‘just because’. Finally, Rae led a cool-down relaxation session before we went home.

Feedback about Laughter Yoga

The feedback forms were amazing. 😊 People loved the interaction and shared experience, the informal networking, the opportunity to relax, be silly and laugh. One person commented that they’d be laughing all the way home. Yes, some tasks felt a little uncomfortable, but I got over it by throwing myself into the experience and it was fun! I wouldn’t call it “yoga” but it was a really successful, light, fun, evening and it felt really good to actually do stuff with other people!

Reviewed by Zana Parker