When Grief Feels Heavy: How Laughter Yoga Can Gently Help You Breathe Again

Tové and her Mum sitting on a bench — Tové Sitting on a Bench with her late mother, Anne.

When Grief Feels Heavy: How Laughter Yoga Can Gently Help You Breathe Again

Grief is a strange thing. One minute you’re functioning, the next, a memory, scent, or silence catches your heart and everything floods back in. If you’ve lost someone you love—especially a parent—you know what I mean.

I know the ache of loss. I’ve said goodbye to my mother, to pets who were like soul companions, to friends and family I thought would always be there. Each goodbye shaped me differently. Some made me quiet. Some made me rage. Others, I simply didn’t know how to process.

That’s why I want to gently offer you something that helped me: Laughter Yoga.

Now, I know it might sound strange to bring laughter into a space of grief. But please stay with me for a moment. This isn’t about laughing at grief, or “cheering up,” or denying your pain. It’s about giving your body—and your heart—a way to breathe again.

💛 Laughter and Grief Can Coexist

There’s a myth that once you start laughing, you’ve moved on. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Laughter doesn’t erase grief. It doesn’t dishonour your loved-one or the love you still carry.

In fact, it can honour them. Laughter can be a bridge back to the joyful moments you shared. A tribute, not a betrayal.

🌬️ When You’re Ready: Gentle Ways to Begin

You don’t have to force joy. You don’t even have to “feel” like laughing. These are soft, simple practices you can do when you feel ready:

Sigh-to-Laugh Breathing Take a deep breath in… and sigh it out with a soft “haaa.”Repeat a few times. Then let that sigh gently morph into a soft chuckle, even if it’s a whisper of a laugh.
Mirror Smiling Look at yourself in the mirror and smile—not because you’re happy, but because your nervous system responds to that smile with softness. It’s your invitation to yourself.
Remember and Giggle Think of a quirky or funny thing your dad used to say or do. Let the memory rise. If a laugh bubbles up, let it. If it brings tears, let those flow too. They’re both part of the same heart space.

🌱 Movement Shifts Emotion

Grief that stays stuck can feel like concrete in the body. But laughter is movement. It’s breath. Even a small laugh can act like an emotional exhale. It doesn’t need to be big. Just a few minutes a day can begin to shift things.

📥 Free Guide: "Healing Grief With Laughter Yoga"

If this resonates with you, I’ve created a gentle, supportive PDF guide just for you. It includes:

A few simple Laughter Yoga exercises tailored for grief
Breathing techniques for emotional release
And gentle journal prompts to help you process and honour your feelings

This is written to you, from me—with the voice of someone who knows what it’s like to love deeply and to lose. [Click here to download your free guide]

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bit.ly/laughterandgrief

You don’t have to laugh today. But just know this: There will come a day when you’ll feel a little lightness again—and it won’t mean you’ve forgotten. It will mean that your love has found a new way to breathe.

With all my heart,

Tové