Ask anyone who knows me and they will tell you I love to laugh.  Sometimes I even giggle inappropriately, but I imagine that can be attributed to a head injury in my distant past.  Laughter is appropriate to diffuse just about any tense situation, except maybe a funeral, (though I have laughed at a funeral…long story).  Kids love to laugh, adults love to laugh, even my dog seems to laugh when I scratch that certain spot on her belly.  

If you work with people on a daily basis you know how important it is to be friendly, but sometimes being friendly isn’t enough.  As a surgical nurse I work with people who are many times facing the scariest moment of their lives.  Facing surgery and placing your life in the hands of a staff you have only just met is scary and overwhelming, not only for the patient, but their families as well.  

When I introduce myself and ask all the questions I need to ask to get my job done, I try to be upbeat and infuse a little humor as well.  This helps to loosen people up, smile and actually helps them to relax a bit.  The more relaxed a person can be going into surgery, the better they do post operatively.  Not an official study mind you, just what I’ve observed in my 24 year nursing career.  People that are nervous and uptight have more pain and post operative nausea and vomiting.

I realize some people don’t take well to humor, you just have to play it by ear.  If I open with a witty quip and my patient gives me a blank stare, I know there is a possibility nothing I say can make it better for this person.  Many times though I have been entertained myself by witty patients and their quick retorts and I must say, nothing makes my day happier than to share my comedy routine with a patient or family member.

I’m terrible at remembering jokes, but I often ask my patients to tell one, if I think it will help them to refocus their mind.  I have even had a patient start to tell a joke as he was drifting off to sleep, unfortunately, he fell asleep before he made it to the punch line.  But like any good comedian, he wanted the laughs.  He woke up in the recovery room and recited the punchline like a pro.

Like anything else, humor can be annoying if it’s overused, so use it sparingly, but I do believe that having a great sense of humor and laughing more is the key to a happy life.  🙂