SCREAM Day couldn’t have come at a better time – when stress levels are high with everything going on in the world. Celebrated on April 24, the day brings awareness to the health benefits of letting out a big bellow.
Over 2 000 years ago, screaming was viewed as therapeutic and was supplementary to Eastern Medicine. Master of Chinese Medicine Dr Lu believes that screaming aids in healing liver stagnation.
Primal screaming was designed by Arthur Yanov as a way to process emotions and let it all out with a long howl. There is evidence that screaming taps into deep emotions and brings them to the surface.
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While there are many other ways of relieving frustration, some psychologists believe that a good old scream can be therapeutic. According to psychology, when a person releases their frustrations, through a good, old-fashioned howl, the brain relaxes, which could actually bring some much-needed immediate relief.
Scream Day is observed to help people who need to let out their frustration and to bring awareness to the health benefits of letting out that scream. It is also a reminder that frustrations can be let out in a safer way rather than lashing out at others.
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As suggested above, there are different safe ways to let out a scream – places where it is safe to make a noise – like in the shower or the car or into a pillow – being careful that it’s done in a way that doesn’t disturb other people. A great example is driving to a safe car park and taking a deep breath to blast out the biggest scream.
According to psychology, screaming may even give a person a release of endorphins which are positive chemicals in the brain that allow for a feeling of strength and a natural ’high’.
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