MARION — Doug Savage loves to laugh, turning mundane and often stressful situations into a joyous experience. Whether it’s on his way to work, cooking a meal or taking a shower, he won’t hesitate to heartily guffaw, even if there is no reason to.

Sometimes, he pulls the string on an imaginary lawnmower, replacing the first sputter with a single “ha!,” and the second with a “haha!,” which gradually builds to a full laugh.

Laughter is his best medicine and enjoys sharing it with the people around him. 

Savage is a Certified Laughter Yoga Leader who works at a Barden’s Boatyard in Marion.

Laughter yoga often involves groups of people performing humorous and childlike exercises to enthusiastically laugh for at least 10 to 15 minutes. This boosts their physical and mental health.

Some of the exercises for laughter yoga include laughing while hopping around a room like a bunny, something Savage calls bunny laughter. Another is peekaboo laughter, where people laugh every time they reveal their hidden faces from behind their hands. 

Savage first learned about laughter yoga four years ago online. Intrigued, he decided to attend a laughter yoga class. Three years later, after taking a break, he started working on Laughter Yoga Instructor certification. When he took a refresher course on laughter yoga in March it gave him a more heightened appreciation for the practice.

“It turned a switch inside of me, sort of a fire underneath, and I’ve taken it to a new level” said Savage.

Savage went on to do laughter yoga sessions at assisted living homes and other places and doesn’t plan on stopping there. However sometimes it can be tough to spread the word about a practice that few people know about. 

Someday, when he gets more people to try his laughter yoga classes, he hopes to have sessions in hospitals, schools, rehab clinics and group homes and become a full time yoga laughing instructor.

“I’m an incurable optimist. Sometimes it’s a blessing, sometimes it’s a curse,” said Savage, on what keeps him trying to establish laughter yoga groups. 

On average, children laugh between 300 to 400 times a day, while adults only laugh between 15 and 20 times, said Savage. 

Laughter increases the supply of oxygen to the brain and the rest of the body, increasing energy levels. Dr. Madan Kataria, who founded laughter yoga with his wife and three others in India, said it also acts as cardio, where 10 minutes of hearty laughter is just as much a workout as 30 minutes on a rowing machine. 

For now, Savage is doing what he can to get more people interested in attending his sessions.

On World Laughter Day (May 5) Savage will hold a laughter yoga session at Buzzards Bay Park from 1 to 2 p.m. Savage will also have a session at the Elizabeth Taber Library on May 2 at 6 p.m. 

People who are interested in Savage’s laughter yoga classes can call him at 774-269-3143 or email him at 56sailaway@gmail.com.