The Heart & Soul Of Humor

“There ain’t much fun in medicine, but there’s a heck of a lot of medicine in fun” - Josh Billings
“We do not take humor seriously enough” - Konrad Lorenz
“The First Time You Laugh At Yourself You Grow Up” - Ethel Barrymore

Laughter comes from the Greek word “Gelos” to laugh. Through the study of gelotology we are learning that laughter is good medicine. Good humor is the ability to feel inner joy, peace and harmony within yourself and your surroundings. To discover that we are all part of a divine comedy and that when we become too serious we help the components fro stress, rigid think-ing, helplessness, cynicism and hardening of the attitude. When we see humor in ourselves we are better able to expand our options and choices, gain new perspective, tickle our hearts and soothe our souls.

Going from Oh No to Ah Ha:

1. Become more mindful of negative self talk, what it is you are saying to yourself. The compassionate witness has more chances to see humor.

2. Do not own, awfulize and fight the happenings in your mind, but rather celebrate and share what you are thinking. This becomes easier with practice!

3. Engage in self-parody. Humor, according to Freud, is the only mental mechanism which requires no other persons. Hence the wry smile and the inner dialogue of the humorist.

Humor Survival Kit:

1. Buy something silly you can put on (i.e., a pair of Groucho Marx glasses!). Put them on in situations where you tend to awfulize.
2. Have a staff/family/group laugh once a week, by discussing funny events around your own behavior.
3. Create a Joy List: Your blessings, including people, places & events. Do daily, then read it at the end of the week.
4. Create a Humor Corner/Room @ home or at work. Have funny videos/movies. Have a basket full of silly hats, masks, noses and wands. Once in a while wear one or more while doing chores/work.
5. Do something nice when someone least expects it.
6. Use your imagination more often to create behavior that brings ot the ‘inner child’.
7. Write down a list of all your favorite profanities, then give them a number. If someone is getting on your nerves, just say a number - they’ll never know!
8. Try to be encapsulated in the moment. Don’t put off your happiness or your life for a better time. Remember this is not a dress rehearsal!
9. Adopt an attitude of playfulness. You don’t have to do outrageous things, but keep your mind open to silly, irrelevant, iconoclastic thoughts.
10. Don’t get caught up in being funny. A sense of humor sees the fun in everyday experiences. It is more important to have fun than to be funny.

Klein, Allen, Humor and Healing: Jeremy Tarcher; CA 1989.
Seligman, Martin E.P., Ph.D., Learned Optimism: Alfred A. Knoft; NY 1992.
True, Herb & Anna Mang, Humor Power: How to Get It, Give It and Gain It; Doubleday & Company, Inc.; NY 1980.
Cousins, Norman, Head First, The Biology Of Hope: Harper & Row; New York, 1989.