Laughter is the best medicine: Sharing a smile with a Patient Family Advisor
As a patient and family advisor I was invited to write posts for the nursing blog. I like to write, but a “command performance” can create writer’s block for sure! Since last summer I have tackled the four core concepts of Patient Family Centered Care. Additionally, I wrote a piece to celebrate a milestone birthday.
Now I seek out topics that might interest medical professionals who have obtained degrees that I do not possess. The furthest I got in my education was an Associate’s degree in general studies. To write for you can be daunting if I succumb to feeling inadequate. But, I have a lifetime of experiences and I like to think that I have common sense.
We seniors can feel like beige wallpaper if we allow societal norms to take over our lives. I intend to go out in technicolor. I have always loved to laugh. In fact, while being wheeled into the OR for a partial mastectomy, my anesthesiologist said, “I heard you have a good laugh. Tell me a joke.” So, under the influence of pre-surgical medication, I proceeded to tell him an off color, inappropriate joke. Clearly, I blame the medication! But, before I went into the dreamless, black sleep induced by anesthesia, I heard laughter. Good stuff for an extremely anxious patient.
My point here is that my focus going forward will primarily be on addressing medical issues and care via humor. I have met a few individuals in my lifetime that completely lack humor, but not many. In fact, if you ask anyone what qualities they find most attractive in looking for a person with whom to share a loving relationship, a sense of humor is invariably in the top three.
You Tube is an interesting app that I am enjoying very much. In the spirit of laughter, here is one viral video that I think will make you smile: Girl proposes to nurse on anesthesia (to clarify, the girl is under anesthesia, not the nurse!).
Thanks for all you do!
Pat Clesh
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