When i was studing to become a nurse and now some 20 years later is still ask my patients: “How are you doing?”. One day a young woman replied “I’m killin’ it !!”. “Killin’ it?” I echoed. “Yeah—I’m killin’ it, because otherwise, it’s killin’ me,” the woman replied. This exchange set the tone for my nurse-patient relationship for the next few days. Even as Icould see the side effects of chemo setting in, this woman kept up their inside joke, feeding an easy sense of trust between us.…

When it comes to relieving stress, more giggles and guffaws are just what the doctor ordered. Here’s why. Whether you’re guffawing at a sitcom on TV or quietly giggling at a newspaper cartoon, laughing does you good. Laughter is a great form of stress relief, and that’s no joke. Stress relief from laughter. A good sense of humour can’t cure all ailments, but data is mounting about the positive things laughter can do.…

Humour is a quality of perception that enables us to experience joy even when faced with adversity. Stress is an adverse condition during which we may experience tension or fatigue, feel unpleasant emotions, and sometimes develop a sense of hopelessness or futility. Nurses work in stress-filled environments that place demands upon their physical, emotional, and spiritual well being.…

Humour is thought to serve a wide range of positive functions in health care. This includes providing comfort to patients and reducing anxiety in difficult situations, serving as a means of raising difficult topics that might otherwise be taboo, offering an outlet for negative emotions such as frustration and anger, enhancing working relationships by relieving interpersonal tension and challenging and maintaining the structure of professional relationships.…

Humour is a quality of perception that enables us to experience joy even when faced with adversity. Stress is an adverse condition during which we may experience tension or fatigue, feel unpleasant emotions, and sometimes develop a sense of hopelessness or futility. Nurses work in stress-filled environments that place demands upon their physical, emotional, and spiritual well being.…

Within scientific circles, humour is often treated as a “non-serious” topic. According to the article “The Importance of Humor Research” by Peter McGraw in Psychology Today, many scientists fear that their work would be disrespected if they dared to research the what, why, and how of humour. Yet, humour deserves much more reverence than professionals — other than professional comics — are willing to bestow upon it.…

Of all my tools to combat depression and negativity, humour is by far the most fun. And just like mastering the craft of writing, I’m finding that the longer I practice laughing at life—and especially its frustrations–the better I become at it, and the more situations and conversations and complications I can place into that category named “silly.”…