Laughter is the best medicine. How many times have we heard that? It is true, and I know it first-hand because humor has helped me through a multitude of health challenges.
Before a recent colonoscopy and endoscopy, I asked the doctor if he was doing the procedures alphabetically and whether we could nickname him Dr. Waterboard. After cancer surgery where they took a piece of my tongue and the floor of my mouth and the lymph nodes in my neck, I ask the surgeon whether I would ever be able to French kiss again.
Laughter is good for us both physically and mentally. Just smiling makes us feel better.
During the current pandemic, there was a lag before we started seeing humor about the Coronavirus online and on television and psychologists do study the latency between tragedy and jokes. Humor is a stress reducer and there is evidence that it may even improve immune function.
What are the most unused items at home during the current pandemic?
Answer: Bras
I had an acquaintance who once told me that while I was funny and loved to laugh, it would not get me through life. I totally disagree with her and believe that humor is exactly what has helped me survive. My sons make me laugh almost every time they call. I notice that my dogs wag their tails when they hear me laughing. (They also know to duck when I lose my mind and release a primal scream at some computer problem or lost password issue.)
According to a recently published article by Jane Hilburt-Davis:
“In fact, laughing seems to shield us from calamity’s effects. Earlier philosophers and psychiatrists (Plato, Aristotle, Hobbes, Freud) suggested that laughing was both a way of taking control and bonding with others. When we laugh at a COVID-19 “Saturday Night Live” skit or a Stephen Colbert quip (“Home is where the heart is. Also everything else for the foreseeable future”), we feel connected.”
She goes on to say, “Humor is a pressure valve; it softens the blow and serves an important function during tough times like these. So, not only is it all right to laugh at COVID-19, it’s essential as an invaluable weapon against a common enemy.”
As we look at a long summer ahead with minimal opportunity to gather and enjoy the company of others, we need to keep a sense of humor and we need to laugh through FaceTime or Zoom or even by sending funny videos to each other by phone. And somehow we need to look at the glass half full, not half empty.
In the spirit of moving on, we found a fun article in Vogue called “ 8 Social Media Accounts to Help Keep You Sane”. One that I like is Calm that provides guided meditations and mindfulness exercises.
Another site is MadMax Fluffy Road that follows the daily life of a Corgi.(of course I would like this) and another is YokoOno that is surprisingly peaceful and spiritual:
https://www.vogue.com/article/8-soothing-social-media-accounts-to-know?utm_source
Who doesn’t love seeing Meryl Streep at home in her bathrobe toasting Stephen Sondheim? She’s fabulous and so natural and real.
“Everybody rise!” Meryl Streep performing “The Ladies Who Lunch” during a live-streamed celebration of Broadway legend Stephen Sondheim.Broadway.com
We are not saying that our roots are looking a little gray but were that a possibility for anyone you know, check out this site that has temporary touch up color for roots until hair salons can open:
The last story of interest is from ForbesWomen: “According to a new study, the more women there are on medical company boards, the more likely it is that their coronavirus treatments are safer. “The Influence of Female Directors on Product Recall Decisions” study found highly-defective medical products and treatments are recalled 28 days faster–35% faster–when more than one woman is on the board of directors, compared to all-male boards.” |
So there. Stay safe and well.
Ciao
Lucy and Claudia