Humor is one of those elements that naturally helps us release stress. With it, big problems stop seeming so big, and people who could intimidate us seem smaller. In this sense, it can liven up any evening or brighten up any cloudy day. Thus, humor as therapy is a fundamental tool.
Although it is related to leisure and free time, science has shown that in some situations humor can be a complement that improves the results of an intervention. An ingredient that intervenes, at certain times, gains dynamism. At the same time, this form, included in communication, can generate or establish trust between specialist and patient/client.
The truth is that when we laugh, we experience the following effects
- The brain’s reward circuit is activated, releasing endorphins and dopamine, which are hormones related to well-being and happiness.
- Cortisol levels, the stress hormone, decrease due to the action of dopamine and endorphins.
- The muscles relax, especially the facial muscles.
- Increases the feeling of tranquility and security.
- The feeling of pleasure and relaxation distracts us from problems and worries.
On the other hand, Professor Heidi L. Fritz of Salisbury University has devoted much of her professional career to studying the relationship between humor and stress. The results of her studies affirm that the more pronounced a person’s sense of humor is, the lower the stress they may experience.
Beyond laughter, humor as therapy
Although the most visible consequence of humor is laughter, there are other consequences. Furthermore, humor as a therapy should not be confused with a lack of seriousness, with irony, or with a state of mind in which euphoria takes control.
Its real utility lies in the fact that it gives us a different point of view: it acts as one of those mirrors that distorts images. At the same time, it can indicate the possibility of adding changes to the filters we use to perceive and process information.
We can say that humor brings happiness, even when adversity surrounds us. For an instant, it is capable of stopping the flow of negative thoughts, a second that is often enough to break the circle in which we are immersed and which feeds them.
The challenge of the most emotionally intense professions
Health professionals working in emergencies, police officers, or firefighters face very complicated situations daily, where tension peaks can be very high. This means that their work often becomes a factor that produces emotional imbalances.
The harshness of these situations lies mainly in the involvement of other people and the adversities they experience. For example, a doctor working in an emergency room has to make important decisions in a short space of time, often without having all the information about what is happening to the injured person and even assuming the risk of causing further harm. Moving or not moving a person at a certain moment can cause paralysis or save their life.
In these cases, the addition of humor can help lower stress levels once the decision has been made and before the next tense moment comes.
The crucial role of humor as a therapy in emergencies
The great usefulness of humor as therapy in these contexts can be divided into these facets:
- Humor is a tool for one’s health and performance, in the short and long term. It allows one to overlook the unsightly, normalize the harshness of situations, and avoid despair. It helps one to take control of the situation, attenuating its impact.
- Humor is a tool for building relationships between colleagues. Complicity in stressful situations between team members can play a particularly important role in performance and cooperation. In addition, the climate of trust that it generates facilitates the expression of emotions at later times.
- Humor is a tool for dealing with patients/affected people. For a person who finds themselves in a very stressful situation and cannot do anything about it, such as when we have called an ambulance and are waiting for it to arrive, humor can act as an emotional “lifesaver”
Humor is good when it is sensitive to context.
It is just as important to use humor in situations where it can lower tension as it is to refrain from using it in situations where it can only increase tension. In this sense, people are unique, as are the circumstances that surround us at any given moment. This requires constant observation and adaptation to a very dynamic environment.
Thus, the use of humor as an element that can generate all the effects described requires an intelligent use of it, a selection of moments based on empathy and respect. Otherwise, it can be very counterproductive. On the other hand, in case of doubt, we can try to use it in a very gentle way, responding afterward to the feedback that others give us.
Humor, both in therapy and outside of it, is a very powerful ally when used intelligently. Intelligently means in a way that is adapted to the situation. In essence, we are talking about a style of communication. A style of work. A way of life.