Is Humor Really the Best Medicine?

April is National Humor Month!


“Through humor, you can soften some of the worst blows that life delivers. And once you find laughter, no matter how painful your situation might be, you can survive it.” Bill Cosby

It defuses fear. People are scared of their bodies. Humor can crack through the ice and take the fear away.

It relaxes you. Medical procedures such as surgery are stressful. When you push any engine, including your body, to its maximum, every once in a while it slips a gear. The ways the body manifests that are irregular heartbeats, high blood pressure and increased sensitivity to pain. When people use humor, the autonomic nervous system just tones down a bit to take it off high gear, and that allows the heart to relax.

Stress Reduction. For example, after open-heart surgery a patient might say, “My chest really hurts.” And I would say with wink, “Oh, does it feel like someone opened you up, cut the bone and operated in there?” That tells them the pain is normal and making the recovery stress free.

Anti-Depressant. Humor can help with depression in a couple of ways. First, having something to laugh at can distract somebody from their feelings of disappointment, guilt and lack of self-worth. A reprieve from these feelings may lead to openness to a positive self image. Second, having a humorous perspective implies having the ability to step back from one's immediate perception of the world and see the world through wider lenses. By cultivating this humorous outlook, one may be able to see themselves more objectively and outside their normal negative thought.

Cardiovascular Workout! Laughing helps our heart rate and blood pressure temporarily rise, we breathe faster, oxygen surges throughout our bloodstream, and several muscles get exercised. Our face, shoulders, diaphragm, abdomen, & other muscles are involved in laughter outburst. Laughter is even referred to as "inner jogging" as it can burn up many calories per hour as a brisk walk.

So, LAUGH HARD AND LAUGH OFTEN!

Call Senior Helpers if you can benefit from in-home senior care. Visit us at http://www.seniorhelpers.com/ or www.seniorhelpers.com/wheaton