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Ah, the joys of (mis)communication! Consider, for example, these real-life chart notes written about hospital patients in the U.K.: Continue reading
Tag Archives: humor
Maxine © 1986 Shoebox Greetings
Finding the funny when the diagnosis isn’t
11 AugNote from Carolyn: “I’m taking the weekend off as we celebrate with family and friends the wedding of my favourite daughter, Larissa. So meanwhile, I’ve obtained permission to republish this guest post by Casey Quinlan for you. Enjoy!”
It’s not easy hearing your name and [insert dread diagnosis here]. I know this only too well after having to find the funny in my own journey through cancer. Cancer is, however, most often a diagnosis that you fight to a defined end. What’s it like to find the funny in a chronic condition?
I have a number of friends who are battling MS, one of whom, Amy Gurowitz, shared a link on Facebook the other day to Jim Sweeney’s online empire of improv humor and chronic disease. Jim’s MS journey started with vision problems in 1985, he was officially diagnosed in 1990, and has been dealing with the disease – finding the funny most of the time – ever since. Continue reading
Advice for heart patients too tired to do housework
11 Dec
“Always keep several get well cards on the mantle. So if unexpected guests arrive, they will think you’ve been sick and unable to clean.”
Maxine © 1986 Shoebox Greetings
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How humour can help – or hurt – your heart disease recovery
14 Sep
by Carolyn Thomas ♥ @HeartSisters
“My hubby is stuck with me for another 15 years as long as I keep following doctor’s orders.”
“I told my family that I now had a pig valve in my heart – but I was disappointed when the doctor told me I couldn’t keep the bacon.”
“I am determined to outlive my husband – because I want to clean out his garage!”
Heart patients often use humour like this to distract themselves from the high levels of stress and fear often associated with a life-altering diagnosis like heart disease – such as upcoming surgery, tests, or even the ongoing awareness of increased risk of future cardiac events. So reports Nicholas Lockwood, whose research focused on the subject of how heart patients use humour to help them cope with such a frightening condition – but ended up showing some surprising results. Continue reading
When eating chocolate is the only right thing to do!
28 Jul
Does anybody remember this classic I Love Lucy episode in which Lucy and Ethel land jobs on the chocolate factory assembly line? Sometimes ya gotta do what ya just gotta do. Thanks to Dr. Laura Imola of Niagara Falls for reminding me recently that laughing out loud is very good for our hearts.
See also:
Resilience: it’s hard to feel like a victim when you’re laughing
18 Jun
Somebody recently described my presentations on women’s heart disease as “part stand-up comedy and part serious cardiology talk!” I think she was right. I now believe, in fact, that some parts of my own heart attack story are downright hilarious. In hindsight, of course.
They weren’t one bit amusing when they were actually happening.
Authors Drs. Steven J. Wolin and Sybil Wolin would likely say that this ability to see humour in a catastrophic health crisis can be a key ingredient in healing resiliency. In their book The Resilient Self, they describe creativity and humour respectively in this way: “they turn nothing into something and something into nothing.” Continue reading
This was cool to win. . .
And so was this . . .
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