This is the second part of five about the essence of humor and what kind of effects it has on the human body and/or mind.

Humour comes with certain consequences. These can be distinguished by:

• physical behaviours
• social behaviours
• psychological behaviours
• emotional behaviours
• cognitive behaviours.

Social Behaviours

Humour can make relationships easier. Humour can have a discharging effect on certain situations. It is often infectious and can give a feeling of unity. A group’s bond can be enhanced by using humour and can also have an influence on certain members within a group. Humour can also reduce fearful emotions (Baks, 2002).

As nurses we all know our humour when we close the door. We talk about patients and/or their family. We talk about the strange situations we sometimes get ourselfs in and then we laugh about it.

Patty Wooten once said: You may occasionally see us laughing, or even take note of some jest. Know that we are giving your loved one our care at its very best. There are times when the tension is highest. There are times when our systems are stressed. We’ve discovered humor as a factor in keeping our sanity blessed. So, if you’re a patient in waiting, or a relative, or a friend of one seeing, Don’t hold our smiling against us; it’s the way we keep from screaming.

And I fully agree with her.

When was the last time that you had a good laughter with one or more collegues and what was the situation in which it occurred?