Frequently Asked Questions about Laughter Yoga – or Need more in-depth answers? Try the Blog Section
Every session starts with a short introduction – what you’ll be doing, why it works, and a gentle reassurance that you don’t need to feel happy, be funny, or have any experience at all.
From there, the session moves into Pranayama – deep yogic breathing that relaxes the body and brings your mind into the present moment. Then come the laughter exercises: usually 10 to 15 in a session, mixing simulated laughter warm-ups with clapping and breathwork. Some exercises are rooted in everyday situations; others are more playful. What tends to surprise people is how quickly the simulated laughter starts to feel real – the body can’t tell the difference, and genuine laughter tends to follow naturally.
Depending on the length of your session (30, 45, or 60 minutes), you’ll finish with a laughter meditation and a period of non-sleep, deep rest – a guided body relaxation that leaves most people feeling noticeably calmer and lighter than when they walked in.
Want to know more about what to expect? Read the full guide: What Happens in a Laughter Yoga Session.
You can read about the full range of mind and body benefits, read about these here.
We are transparent about pricing to ensure clarity for potential clients. Read about our Corporate Social Responsibility in this article.
Corporate Wellness Workshops
Corporate wellness workshops – For full pricing details, download the Services Pack or get in touch.
We serve clients across the UK and globally, with our base in Manchester.
Discover some of the benefits of a Corporate Laughter Workshop.
Get in touch or if you have a date in mind, submit an enquiry.
Read more about how the social impact model works.
Charity Sessions
Charities and mental health organisations receive a discounted rate. For bespoke programmes, training, or regular bookings, get in touch to talk through what works for your team and budget.
Download the Serious Laughter Services Pack for a full overview of session lengths, what’s included, and how to book.
Community and Public Sessions
Serious Laughter operates a social impact model – every corporate booking helps fund free and reduced-cost spaces for community groups and individuals. Public taster sessions are kept as accessible as possible, with some free spaces available on request.
View and book upcoming sessions or email happy@seriouslaughter.co.uk to ask about free spaces.
Read more about how the social impact model works
Both formats are effective – and the laughter is just as real either way.
Online sessions run on Zoom and work particularly well for remote or hybrid teams, organisations spread across multiple sites, and individuals who’d like to experience Laughter Yoga from home before coming along in person. They’re easy to join, need no travel, and take very little setting up.
In-person sessions bring an extra layer of energy – the kind that comes from being in the same room, making eye contact, and laughing together face to face. For team-building and deeper connection, many groups find in-person particularly powerful.
The honest answer is that both work. The best choice is simply whichever one removes the most barriers to you actually giving it a try.
Most standard meeting rooms, training spaces, and community halls work well – so if you have a space that comfortably fits your group, it’ll likely be fine.
As a rough guide, each person needs enough room to stand with their arms stretched out to either side. For a 30 or 45-minute session, that’s all you need. For a 60-minute session, a little extra floor space helps – participants are invited to lie down for the deep relaxation at the end, though this is always optional.
Tables can stay around the edges, and the space doesn’t need to be large. If you’re unsure whether your venue works, just drop Sunny a message and she’ll let you know.
That’s a great sign – and Laughter Yoga will take it even further.
Natural laughter is reactive. Something funny happens, you laugh for a few seconds, and it’s over. You can’t manufacture it on demand, and on a hard day, it might not come at all.
Laughter Yoga removes that dependency entirely. Sessions involve sustained laughter exercises lasting 15 to 20 minutes – far longer than anything that happens naturally in daily life. That extended duration is where the deeper benefits come in: more stress relief, better immune function, improved mood, and a genuine shift in how you feel by the end.
If you already laugh easily, you’ll find it comes even more naturally here – and you might be surprised how much deeper the benefits go when laughter is intentional rather than accidental.
Not at all. There are no Yoga poses, no stretches to master, and no prior experience needed.
The only connection to traditional Yoga is the breathing technique – Pranayama – which involves deep, rhythmic breaths, sometimes with a gentle arm raise or forward fold. It’s straightforward, calming, and anyone can do it.
Everything else in a Laughter Yoga session is laughter exercises and playful movement – nothing that requires flexibility, fitness, or coordination.
No, and you won’t need Lycra leggings either.
Most exercises are done standing, though seated options are always available for anyone who needs them. If your session includes a laughter meditation or a period of guided relaxation at the end, you’re welcome to lie down – but it’s entirely your choice.
Warm fleece blankets and inflatable pillows are provided, so you’ll be comfortable whatever you decide. Just bring yourself and a willingness to give it a go.
There’s a little wordplay in the name – and it works on two levels.
When Sunny began her Laughter Yoga journey in 2016, she noticed how many serious faces there were in the world. Stressed commuters, overwhelmed colleagues, people going through difficult times, with very little laughter in their lives. She saw a real need to bring more joy and lightness to everyday life – and that felt like serious work worth doing.
At the same time, the name reflects the science. The benefits of laughter aren’t trivial – they’re backed by research, measurable, and genuinely life-changing for many people. Laughter deserves to be taken seriously.
Serious Laughter felt like exactly the right way to say both things at once.
Serious Laughter works with a wide range of people and organisations across the UK – in person across Manchester, Cheshire, and beyond, and online for teams and individuals anywhere.
Sessions, training, and programmes are tailored for corporate teams, NHS and healthcare organisations, schools, nurseries and universities, community groups, charities, and individuals. Whether you’re an HR manager looking for a meaningful staff wellbeing session, a social prescriber seeking something different for your clients, or someone who simply wants more laughter in your own life – there’s something here for you.
People come to Laughter Yoga for all kinds of reasons: stress, low mood, social isolation, burnout, or just a genuine desire to feel better. You don’t need to be struggling to benefit – and you don’t need to feel happy to start.
This is probably the question Sunny hears most – and the answer is always yes.
Laughter Yoga is built on one simple truth: your body can’t tell the difference between laughter that happens naturally and laughter that starts on purpose. That means you don’t need to feel happy, be in a good mood, or find anything funny. You just need to turn up.
Sessions begin with simulated laughter exercises – and within a few minutes, something shifts. The laughter starts to feel real. The heaviness lightens. People who arrived feeling exhausted or anxious often leave noticeably brighter – not because they forced it, but because the body’s feel-good chemicals (dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, and endorphins) respond to laughter, whether it’s simulated or genuine.
Sunny came to Laughter Yoga through her own experience of depression, at a time when laughter felt like the last thing possible. If it worked for her, it can work for you, too.
Sunny shares: Honestly? Depression brought me to it.
In 2016, I was on antidepressants and navigating some of the hardest years of my life. A friend told me about a laughter wellbeing session at the LGBT Foundation in Manchester – and something made me go.
I didn’t go reluctantly. From the very first session, I was hooked. The shift I felt was immediate and real – not a cure, not a fix, but a genuine lift that I hadn’t felt in a long time. I went back every month, and the more I experienced it, the more I wanted to share it with other people.
That led me to the 2-day Certified Laughter Yoga Leader training, and then the 5-day Laughter Yoga Teacher course. Serious Laughter followed from there – and I haven’t looked back.
I share this because I know what it’s like to feel like laughter belongs to a different version of yourself. If you’re in that place, you’re especially welcome here.
Laughter Yoga is suitable for most people and can be adapted for a wide range of physical abilities – including seated options for those who need them. No prior fitness is required.
That said, because sessions involve cardiovascular activity, deep breathing, and some abdominal engagement, there are a few situations where we’d ask you to check with your GP first. These include pregnancy, a recent operation, hernia, incontinence, haemorrhoids, heart conditions involving chest pain, epilepsy, psychosis, severe asthma, or an acute illness such as a cold or flu.
If you have any ongoing health investigations or are unsure whether Laughter Yoga is right for you, a quick conversation with your GP is all it takes.
All participants are asked to read and sign a contraindication sheet before taking part. View the contraindications.
Laughter Yoga Sessions
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