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Humor: Not Just a Laughing Matter!

Humor: Not Just a Laughing Matter!. Susan Flewelling Goran RN, MSN. Definitions of Humor. ‘ Fun that’s funny’ ‘the sensation of feeling good all over but showing it in just one place’ ‘Jogging of the internal organs’

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Humor: Not Just a Laughing Matter!

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  1. Humor: Not Just a Laughing Matter! Susan Flewelling Goran RN, MSN

  2. Definitions of Humor • ‘Fun that’s funny’ • ‘the sensation of feeling good all over but showing it in just one place’ • ‘Jogging of the internal organs’ • ‘any communication which is perceived by any of the interacting parties as humorous and leads to laughing, smiling, and a feeling of amusement’ • “emotional chaos remembered in tranquility”

  3. Humorous Mirth Wit Laughter Experience Interrelationships of Wit, Mirth, & Laughter

  4. Interrelationships…Wit • Wit as a thought-oriented experience • Changes cognitive process, appreciate, or think • Changes the thought pathway to other thinking patterns and perspectives • A joke guides us down 1 path only to be tricked to an alternative path (the punch line) • Reduces negative thinking “trainwrecks of the mind” N. Cousins

  5. Interrelationships…Mirth • Mirth…the emotional response (joy) • During the emotional sensation of mirth, negative feelings, at least temporarily, are eliminated • Mirth provides pleasure, happiness, etc. • Mirth without cognitive or physiological reaction: ‘silly behavior’ or children

  6. Interrelationships…Laughter • The physiological experience… • Can experience laughter without wit or mirth… spontaneous laughter or laughter contagion • Round, Warm, Vulnerable, Bearer of life, Holder of truth, Laughter releases her greatest wisdom and all pain and sorrow is transmuted to Joy. Baubo Greek Goddess of Belly Laughter

  7. For your health… Train yourself to appreciate (cognitive), feel (mirth), and physically experience (laugh) .

  8. Therapeutic Physical Effects of Humor

  9. Therapeutic Physical Effects of Humor • Decreased heart rate • Decreased blood pressure • Increased vascular blood flow

  10. Therapeutic Physical Effects of Humor • May lead to hiccuping and coughing, which clears the respiratory tract by dislodging mucous plugs • Decreases pulmonary dead space • Increased oxygenation • Exercises the diaphragm The Lungs

  11. Therapeutic Physical Effects of Humor • Laughing: • Increased natural killer cells • Increase disease-fighting protein • Increased immune response • B-cells (make antibodies) • Stress hormones suppress immune system, increase platelets and raise BP

  12. Therapeutic Physical Effects of Humor Laughing 100 times is equal to 10 minutes on the rowing maching or 15 minutes on an exercise bike

  13. Therapeutic Physical Effects of Humor • Increased memory • Increased endorphins (natural opiate) for pain relief

  14. Therapeutic Social Functions of Humor • Encourage trust • Encourages friendship • Decreases fear, anxiety, & embarrassment

  15. Why Now??

  16. Time of Transition

  17. Humor in the Workplace • 15-20% of workers are fired because of lack of competence. • 80% are terminated because of their inability to get along with fellow employees Robert Taft International

  18. Better Business! • Humor Facilitates Communication • Non-threatening medium which allows communication with others without intensifying the emotional temperature of the relationship

  19. Better Business! • Humor Builds Relationships: • Development of staff cohesion • Sense of team effort

  20. Better Business! • Humor Reduces Stress • $150 Billion/Year • 60-90% of all visits to physician are related to stress • 60% of absenteeism • 20 % of the payroll of a typical company goes toward dealing with stress-related problems

  21. Provides an opportunity to redefine context ‘Oils the gears of the workplace’ Humor provides Perspective

  22. Better Business! • Command attention • Energizes (increases norepinephrine uptake in the brain) • Improved memory

  23. Humor Rules for the Workplace • Don’t make jokes about coworkers’ sexuality • Don’t make jokes about people’s appearance. • Avoid jokes about religion, ethnic background, nationality, sexual orientation, etc. • Avoid jokes about bodily functions

  24. What Can We Do? • Acts involving some sort of surprise and/or exaggeration that make people feel good: • Jokes • Unexpected compliment • Encouraging email • Mystery prizes

  25. If we tell a joke… • Make it about yourself: your flaws, neuroses and inadequacies • About the situation you face together… • Personal characteristics in areas of low ego-involvement (handwriting)

  26. Bringing Laughter to Your Workplace

  27. Strategies to Improve Humor

  28. Strategies to Improve Humor • Humor bulletin board • Using props • Collections (funny bumper stickers; pencils) • Start slow….

  29. Look with New Eyes

  30. Surround yourself with People who make you Laugh!!

  31. Be Silly….Play

  32. To the Tune of ‘Row..Row..Row Your Boat’ • Laugh…laugh…laugh out loud • Each and every day • Chuckling…chuckling…chuckling… chuckling • Health is on the way!

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