Product Details

• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Wgbh Boston
• VHS Release Date: March 28, 2000
• Run Time: 80 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6304794509
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #100,208 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Dancing, silliness, and making faces are ways to lighten your day. "Much of our stress and emotional suffering, " Loretta LaRoche tells us, "comes from the way we think." So, obviously our thinking needs to be changed, because we are responsible for our own happiness. Loretta finishes up her series (which includes The Joy of Stress and Humor Your Stress) with How Serious Is This?, a primer to get you to "stop awfulizing" and start laughing.

A committee lives in the head of each and every one of us. It nags us and berates us and gets us all worked up. But we can overrule it by banishing some irrational thoughts (such as the need to always be right and the desire to play the blame game) and embracing some healthy mannerisms (such as meditation and celebrating as often as possible). Using comedy and funny hats, Loretta will teach you the techniques necessary to step a bit lighter, and she'll have you laughing all the way. --Jenny Brown

Product Description

This humorous special puts life in perspective and provides simple rules to live by. Getting down to the nitty-gritty, Loretta acts out the irrational and exaggerated thinking patterns that drive us all nuts: The Awfulizer and Catastrophizer, the Mind Reader and of course, the Baggage Handler. Laugh along as you let Loretta show you how to find the path to the joy of living.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A repeat of the first two, September 2, 1999

By 

Carole G. Allen "Lover of Brit Coms" (Phoenix, Oregon, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Loretta Laroche: How Serious Is This [VHS] (VHS Tape)

The Joy of Stress and Humor Your Stress are, each of them, quite delightful. How Serious is This is a duplicate and her energy is lagging at the beginning. I found that the last half was the most inviting to see. I have shown the first two above many times to groups of people and they have never laughed so hard as they did watching her.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good as long as you don't have any real problems., January 18, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Loretta Laroche: How Serious Is This [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Loretta La Roche's work was recommended to me as a tool for helping me put things in perspective and problem solve during times of stress.

A great deal of her material is funny, timely, and insightful. In one vignette, she observes people becoming angry because their plane was grounded for mechanical reasons. She says something to the effect of "They are angry? I don't think they get it." When you realize the alternative to being grounded, yes, it seems silly to be angry--we should be glad to not be on an unsafe plane. Her observations on daily life are truly cathartic.

However, she doesn't address REAL problems, such as job loss or bankruptcy or bereavement. Her repetition that it is essentially your own darn fault if you are sad is not helpful to those whose stressors are bigger than the deli being out of your favorite bagel. There would be nothing wrong with this if the video case made it clear that this is help for minor annoyances, not Problems. Unfortunately, perhaps for marketing reasons, the video seems to promote itself as a panacea--a fix it for any of life's stressors.

Certainly very funny, but a much narrower application than its billing would have you believe.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars loretta should be bottled and sold as a daily tonic for life, April 1, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Loretta Laroche: How Serious Is This [VHS] (VHS Tape)

I saw How Serious Is This? at a cognitive therapy group I attend weekly and I have not laughed so hard for so long in years. Loretta is right on the money about how seriously we take ourselves and gives you the expert tools to make the necessary repairs to our severly battered mental health.I was so motivated by this video that I decided to get a copy for myself and show it to all my family and friends.It is the best gift you could ever give to anyone.A must see for everyone who has a daily battle with our worst enemy,STRESS!