Health: Laughter as Cure
71Laughter Clubs
Dr. Patch Adams and Norman Cousins
Hunter "Patch" Adams was sorely criticized in his official permanent record at medical school, because he displayed "excessive happiness." Since when does depression make a good doctor?
My own family doctor, as I grew up through high school, was depressed and nasty. While he saw patients, he smoked, yelled, and drank Pepto Bismal incessantly to ease stomach ulcers. His daughter became a nurse and was found lying in the nurses lounge of the downtown hospital complex in which she worked shortly after graduation - dead of a drug overdose se took from the drug supply of the hospital. Her father closed up his practice early the next morning without cancelling patients and left town, never to be heard from again. His long time sole employee, a tired nurse, was left to deal with the aftermath. This all was not good medicine.
The training of doctors can be abusive, and it need not be so. Adams was exhorted by his faculty advisor that, "If you want to be a clown, join a circus."
Adams no longer wanted to ccommit suicide as he once had, and yes, he did want to be a clown; but, not in a circus. His goal was to use laughter and innovation in the realm of medicine.
Despite the efforts of bullies still in the medical establishment and misunderstandings and heartbreak while developing his humor, Adams became successful. He uses the concepts of an indidivual life calling and humor to heal the everyday lives and the accute tragedies of his patients and community at Gesundheit Insitute and around the world.
The Doctor travels 300 days a year and gives up to 11 presentations a day, showing how serious he is that humor will work miracles. Busloads of volunteers travel with him annually to places as far off as rural parts of Russia and third world countries, where they all done clown noses and laught and care for patients and the broken and downtrodden. He receives so many applications to volunteer each year, that he has to turn away many individuals.
Patch Adams contemplated suicide, spent time as a patient in a mental institute, worked in a psychiitric facilty and came out laughing with the world. He invites others to laugh and treat others with kindness and good humor as well.
Well before Patch Adams became famous, Norman Cousins popularized his plight of poor health and his laughter cure. Almost completely paralyzed by crippling arthrits and similar autoimmune dysfuction, Cousins checked out of the hospital and moved across the street to a hotel where his doctr could visit frequqnelty. Cousins watched funny films and TV shows and the laughter loosenes his jaw, then his neck and then his extremtities so that he could start moving a bit. Adding natural and organic foods and viatmins, he was up exercizing in good time and back to work as a major magazine editor in several months. He evenutally became a professor in Southern California, teaching new doctors how to use laughter to heal.
Universities across America have insituted Humor In Medicine courses, because they have been inspired by his example.
One of the Doctor's opinions about the Healthcare System: "...in the current system of profit, care has been relegated to the burden category: the burden of our elderly, the burden of our poor, the burden of our mentally ill, the burden of the criminal element-and these are all burdens-where it's really the multinational corporations that are getting the gigantic cuts in subsidies and benefits, but we never hear about them being our burden..." - from a TV interview. Dr. Admas would like to place a burden upon everyone in society to help one another achieve better health together, more organically.
Health Results of Laughter
- Study looks at Effects of Laughter on Immune System
In a first-of-its-kind study focusing on ill children and adolescents with depressed immune systems, researchers at UCLA's Jonsson Cancer Center will try to determine if laughter can help reduce pain and prevent and treat diseases. - Laughter Helps Blood Vessels
Using laughter-provoking movies to gauge the effect of emotions on cardiovascular - University of Florida Shands Cancer Center: Laughter May Boost Immune System Killer Cells
According to an article recently published in Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine, laughter may reduce stress and increase natural killer cell levels, a type of white blood cell that attacks cancer cells.
Dr. Patch Adams
Laughing Toward Health
- Patch Adams Home Page
- A Physician and Standup Comedian
- How humor works as medicine.
- Medical laughing classes
- Medical Clown "College"
- Laughter proven to enhance heart and blood vessels.
- Laughter recommended by Ohio State Unviersity Extention Program
- Life and testimony of Norman Cousins, form Harvard Square Library
Dr. Adams's Suggestions to Heal Us All
- Pick up all the trash in an area in your hometown; be its guardian. Tell others about it.
- Be friendly to everyone at all times; experiment outrageously.
- Offer a shoulder or foot rub in any environment.
- Always speak up for justice, no matter how much it costs.
- Go once a week on a "house call" to a nursing home to cheer people up as a friend.
- Turn off your TV and become interesting. Perform yourself.
- Consider being silly in public. Sing out loud. Wear funny stuff.
- Find ways to need a whole lot less money; share beyond belief.
- Have potlucks frequently, with neighbors, co-workers, strangers. Work toward living in extended families.
- Take your vacations in your own hometown and spend the money working on projects there that help build community.
Patch Adams - from Suicide to Joy
Patch Adams Advice
"Too Many Antidepressants"
Marx Brothers Fun
|
|
HARPO Marx Brothers playing piano photo print
Current Bid: $4.99
|
|
|
New Marx Brothers Collection DVD/5 DISC
Current Bid: $19.99
|
|
|
VINTAGE MARX BROTHERS BIG STORE ORIGINAL STILL GROUCHO
Current Bid: $10.00
|
|
|
Super 8 B&W FILM Marx Bros "Pigskin Caper"
Current Bid: $4.99
|
|
|
HARPO MARX w HARP PHOTO POSTER THE MARX BROTHERS BROS
Current Bid: $9.99
|
|
|
Marx Brothers Old Time Radio Show OTR Mp3 CD
Current Bid: $.65
|
Patch Adams
|
House Calls: How We Can All Heal the World One Visit at a Time
Price: $4.73
List Price: $11.95 |
|
|
Gesundheit: Bringing Good Health to You, the Medical System, and Society Through Physician Service, Complementary Therapies, Humor, and Joy
Price: $14.00
List Price: $25.00 |
|
Biography - Adams, Patch (1945-): An article from: Contemporary Authors
Price: $9.95
List Price: $9.95 |
|
|
Eagle Doctor: Stories of Stephen, My Child With Special Needs
Price: $15.56
List Price: $19.95 |
|
Illness and the Art of Creative Self-Expression: Stories and Exercises from the Arts for Those With Chronic Illness
Price: $13.95
List Price: $13.95 |
|
Gesundheit!
Price: $12.70
|
The Colbert Report Vidoes
- Recap - Week of 11/30/09
Stephen shows points out Obama on the U.S. Army Chain of Command, explores aliens at the Vatican and tries out for the U.S. Skeleton Team. - 32 hours ago
- Tiger's Tale
Tiger Woods didn't realize that cheating is a sacred institution between one man, one woman and one other woman. - 2 days ago
- Skate Expectations - Skeleton Team Tryouts
Stephen isn't attending the Vancouver Olympics just to ombud -- he's going as a member of the U.S. Olympic team. - 2 days ago
- Skate Expectations - Skeleton Team Tryouts - Zach Lund
Zach Lund gives Stephen the history of skeleton racing before helping him try out for the Olympic team. - 2 days ago
- Formidable Opponent - Gary the Tennis Coach
Stephen's ex-tennis coach proves himself to be a Formidable Opponent in this passionate confrontation. - 2 days ago
PrintShare it! — Rate it: up down flag this hub
Comments
Laughter certainly is the best medicine!
And Patch Adams - what an inspiring story.
Oh, by the way you might want to proof-read your page summary text ...
Jenny
love it nice hub
Nana, thanks for recognizing this individual. While we all do not need to be so devoted to the extreme, we can apply some of his actions to our own lives. I think the Hubbers generally do this, so A+++ to them.
Inspire, thanks for noting the typing with an accent.
Maham - glad you like this presentation. I hope it made you smile. :)
Great Hub! This reminds me of the Laughter yoga movement where people get together and share laughter exercises. It's been proven to strengthen the immune system, lower blood pressure and provide many othe physical, psychological, and social benefits.
Check out the web site: http://www.laughteryoga.org/
I've seen some material on laughter yoga. Have you done a Hub on it? I will look.
I used to run a Laughter Club in Chicago. It was a lot of fun. I can write a Hub on it.
That will be great fun to read.
Here's a great article on how laughter has been shown to improve the quality of breastmilk. This is enlightening considering that some women experience depression after childbirth. It would seem to me a husband should go on a campaign to make their wife laugh. I'm pretty good at getting my wife to break out laughing even when we are in the middle of an argument. We can do this by not taking things too seriously. When my wife is upset, I can do a little jig or imitate Beyonce dancing or something like that and she'll break out laughing. It's even funnier in the middle of an argument because we will both be pissed off, then break out laughing, then return to being pissed off.
Here's the laughter and breastfeeding link:
nice hub I find this is truth
















LdsNana-AskMormon says:
2 years ago
Patty -
This man has such a great story that it just had to be told. And we are all glad that it has been... and that you have put it forward once again.
It is the healthiest of ancedotes to laugh silly over that which is silly:-)
Life, is silly.
tDMg
LdsNana-AskMormon
Nice work...