For a long time, I forgot how to laugh.
Not the polite smile. Not the nervous chuckle.
But the deep, spontaneous, uncontrollable laughter that bubbles up from safety, connection, and joy.

Trauma doesn’t just wound the heart.
It rewires the brain.

When you live in chronic stress, criticism, fear, or emotional suppression, your nervous system stays in survival mode.
The brain shifts resources away from joy, curiosity, and play — and into hypervigilance and self-protection.

In neuroscience, this is called threat-dominant processing.
Your amygdala stays on high alert.
Your prefrontal cortex — the part responsible for creativity, humour, and perspective — goes offline.

In simple terms:
Your brain stops letting you feel safe enough to laugh.

And when every laugh is met with ridicule, minimisation, or punishment, the brain learns:
👉 Joy is dangerous.

So it switches it off.

But here’s the miracle of neuroplasticity — the brain’s ability to heal and rewire.

When safety returns, laughter slowly comes back online.
At first, it feels unfamiliar. Strange. Vulnerable.
Then one day, without warning, you find yourself laughing freely again.

And suddenly you remember:
This is who I am.

Psychologically, laughter signals:
✔ Emotional safety
✔ Nervous system regulation
✔ Social bonding
✔ Restoration of identity

Biologically, laughter:
🧠 Releases dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin & endorphins
❤️ Lowers cortisol & blood pressure
🛡 Strengthens immune function

In short:
Laughter is medicine.

And rediscovering it after trauma is one of the clearest signs of real healing.

So if you’re laughing again — loudly, freely, without fear —
that isn’t weakness.
That’s recovery.

And it’s beautiful. 🌱✨

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