Value of Humor
Various authors have written about the value of humor to health care professionals and have observed how patients themselves make use of humor in medical environments. In one observational study of hospitalized patients, humor and laughter were frequently witnessed amid patients. The findings of the study are consistent with Bennett (2003) studies and demonstrate that patients employed humor as a coping method to decrease the apprehension and annoyance linked with being in the hospital such as the anxiety of being sick, having to deal with hospital schedules and compliance with authority figures, and the failure of control over bodily functions.
Therapeutic Effects of Humor
The therapeutic effects of humor give the patients the opportunity to forget about their anxiety and pain, if only for a short period of time and may improve the patient's frame of mind and quality of life.
Integrating humor and laughter into the health care surroundings helps doctors and nurses handle the stress of looking after patients who are in pain. Furthermore, it promotes good quality working relationships with colleagues and improves morale. Having a positive outlook at work can also extend to colleagues and support staff.
It is important to know that humor has the potential to alleviate stress in patients and medical professionals.
Scientists say that laughter lowers stress levels, reduces depression and enhances mood, boosts activity of defense immune cells like T-cells that attack and obliterate tumors and viruses, and augments the production of interferon, a hormone that fights viruses and regulates cell growth.
Additionally, laughter has been shown to improve antibody activity, supply physical exercise to the muscles, lungs, and other organs of the body, oxygenate blood, speed up respiration and blood circulation, steady blood pressure, improve digestion, and offer emotional cleansing. It can also reduce pain by stimulating the creation of endogenous opioids like beta-endorphin and enhance the function of the immune system (Kadkhodayan, 2005).
From a psychological point of view, humor entails emotional, cognitive, behavioral, psycho-physiological and social aspects. Humor can refer to a stimulus, which is anticipated to produce a humorous reply, a mental course of action or a response. Laughter is the most familiar expression of humorous occurrence (Bennett & Lengacher, 2006)
Resources:
- Bennett M.P & Lengacher C.A (2005) Humor and Laughter may Influence Health. I. History and Background. Evidenced-based Complimentary and Alternative Medicine 3(1):61-63e;
- Kadkhodayan, A.(2005). Humor and Health: Is It Effective? Journal of Pre-health Affiliated Students(1).
