Lisa Wessan Headshot
Report a problem with this profile
[email protected]

Lisa Wessan    

Creating a space for Grace...

Lisa Wessan was most recently the Mind-Body Geriatric Specialist in the Senior Care Center at Elmhurst Hospital-Mt. Sinai Medical School in Elmhurst, New York, providing individual and family therapy, group work, and motivational programs for the elderly and their caregivers. Since she left New York City, Lisa has been in private practice and working as an inspirational author, speaker, counselor and coach.

Prior to her career as a counselor, Lisa was an internationally published science and health journalist for 20 years, specializing as a biotechnology analyst. She had a successful career at Genetic Engineering News and as editor of the monthly Biotechnology Press Digest.

Her interest in immunology led her to the field of psychoneuroimmunology (PNI), better known as complementary or integrative medicine. PNI led her to work with holistic MDs, eventually producing talk shows in radio and television on complementary medicine. Lisa still has one foot in broadcasting as the producer and on-air host of the weekly cable television show Z Lighter Side of Transformation.

While doing research on stress management techniques in graduate school for clinical social work, Lisa explored the research on therapeutic uses of laughter for caregivers. During post-graduate research on laughter therapy, Lisa became double certified to teach Laughter Yoga and Laughter Meditation in medical settings. Her work has been featured on CNNs Paula Zahn Now, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Daily News, The Boston Globe, The Lowell Sun, ABC News 20/20, and in many television, print and radio interviews.

Lisa facilitates a variety of inspirational keynotes including Team Building with Laughter, Laughter Therapy for Caregivers, Relaxation Techniques, and Clutter to Consciousness, to name a few.

She is also a monthly guest on Thinking Out Loud, a radio talk show on health, recovery and longevity. If you would like further information, please visit her website, www.MirthMaven.com.


Inspirational Humorist/Speaker, Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Certified Reiki Master,

Certified Therapeutic Laughter Coach and Laughter Yoga Teacher

"Thank you for sharing with us The Psychological and Physiological Benefits of Laughter as a means to physical, emotional and spiritual well-being. You have inspired those who offer medical and spiritual care with a renewed awakening of the power of positive emotions created by laughter."

Tanya Atwood-Adams, M.Div., Director, Spiritual Care Program, Crouse Hospital, Syracuse, New York

Speech Topics


The Metaphysics of Weight Loss

"If we don't face our stuff, we stuff our face." This keynote offers an exploration into unresolved grief, fear of intimacy and other factors which can fuel eating disorders. Includes a 5-10 minute meditation, with exercises for release and forgiveness. Special focus on body image, weight management, and the inner and outer journey towards wholeness. If time permits, this program may include "The Food Funeral," which provides a powerful experience of letting go of toxic foods on an emotional and spiritual level.

Let Go & Lighten UP: Laughter is the Best Medicine!

How can you use humor and laughter to overcome obstacles? How can you shift your focus and turn defeats into victories? In this interactive, multimedia, energetic keynote you will learn about the physiological, psychological and spiritual benefits of daily laughter. You will also learn some extraordinary joy-making techniques, including Laughter Meditation, Laughter Yoga & Laffirmations.

Declutter Your Mind, Home & Office: A Holistic Approach

Having clutter at home or at work is a personal challenge that can distract, overwhelm and sometimes disable the clutterer and those around him/her. This keynote discusses some characteristics of a person who clutters and how excess clutter affects health, energy, relationships and prosperity. Successful strategies will be explored, including techniques for the release of clutter, how to find safe free sources of emotional support, stress reduction and guided imagery. All participants will receive handouts, tip sheets and a bibliography with books and web sites to help create a more serene and organized life.

Relaxation Techniques: Many Paths up the Mountain

A multimodal approach to stress management, incorporating a variety of exercises including Sound Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Treatments, Body Work (chair yoga and Reiki), Visualizations, Laughter Meditation and other modalities, brought to you by a certified Reiki Master.

Therapeutic Applications of Humor and Laughter for Caregivers

An academic and experiential workshop incorporating humor and laughter in four parts. (One to six hour formats available.)

Part I: Overview of the history of therapeutic laughter, with a literature review of the most recent psychological and physiological benefits of laughter from peer reviewed journals.

Part II: Constructive vs. destructive humor; case studies on the successful use of therapeutic laughter in business or clinical settings.

Part III: Experiential segment of laughter yoga, laughter meditation and Laffirmations.

Part IV: Aftercare suggestions for the further study and maintenance of your daily laughter practice.

Team Building with Laughter

Team building is a serious and challenging undertaking, and in order to succeed requires a large contribution from everyone. Using humor and laughter during the process causes oxytocin to be released, which stimulates bonding and group cohesiveness. Laughter also relieves tension and makes the whole process fun. In this training, you will learn the core ideas for these techniques: - How to use humor to create a collaborative team environment where people are motivated and ready to contribute. - How to use humor to stimulate listening, trust, cooperation, creativity, and spontaneity. - Practical techniques to "lighten up" the office environment. - How to have more fun at work and easy stress management techniques. - How to use humor to examine and overcome obstacles…how to turn defeats into victories!

Each session also includes a relaxing sequence of Laughter Yoga and Laughter Meditation. These techniques are proven to be easy and workable, and they relieve office stress, relax muscles and give your insides a good laugh-induced massage.

Related Speakers View all


More like Lisa