Humor can...
→ Increase self-confidence through stand-up comedy workshops/lessons.
→ Create and strengthen connectedness through sharing jokes in a social context.
→ Act as a stress-buffer, used in coping strategies to maintain a positive perspective.16
→ Lower blood pressure.
→ Decrease allergies by reducing overreactions by the immune system.
→ Increase pain tolerance.
→ Increase exhalation and blood oxygen levels, making it comparable aerobic exercises.17
Medicals professionals can use humor to...
→ Help depression in children and adolescents by providing ‘joke assignments’ where the patients learns a joke and shares it with their therapist/provider, which allows them to visualize and realize that the patient is capable of feeling good and happy.
→ Create a comfortable environment in group therapy sessions, where children are able to share jokes without revealing personal details (which they may find intimidating to do). Additionally, laughter from their peers gives positive feedback to the joke-sharer.18
→ Communicate mutuality between provider and patient, establishing a trustful relationship with shared experiences.
→ Disrupt troubling behavior by distracting their patient with humor.19
16. Dionigi, Duradoni, and Vagnoli, "Understanding the Association,".
17. Kennison, "The Effects,".
18. William Bernet, "Humor in Evaluating and Treating Children and Adolescents," The Journal of Psychotherapy Practice and Research 2, no. 4 (1993): 309, accessed July 9, 2024, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3330344/.
19. Eshika Kafle et al., "'Beyond Laughter': A Systematic Review to Understand How Interventions Utilise Comedy for Individuals Experiencing Mental Health Problems," Frontiers in Psychology 14 (August 6, 2023): accessed November 14, 2024, https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1161703.