Cases on Applied and Therapeutic Humor

Author: Cundall Jr., Michael K.
Publisher: IGI Global
ISBN: 179984529X
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 283

Book Description
Recent evidence indicates that humor is an important aspect of a person's health, and studies have shown that increased levels of humor help with stress, pain tolerance, and overall patient health outcomes. Still, many healthcare providers are hesitant to use humor in their practice for fear of offense or failure. Understanding more of how and why humor works as well as some of the issues related to real-world examples is essential to help practitioners be more successful in their use and understanding of humor in medical care. Through case studies and real-world applications of therapeutic humor, the field can be better understood and advanced for best practices and uses of this type of therapy. With this growing area of interest, research on humor in a patient care setting must be discussed. Cases on Applied and Therapeutic Humor focuses on humor in medical care and will discuss issues in humor research, assessment of the effectiveness of humor in medical settings, and examples of medical care in specific health settings. The chapters will explore how propriety, effectiveness, perception, and cultural variables play a role in using humor as therapy and will also provide practical case studies from medical/healthcare professionals in which they personally employed humor in medical practice. This book is ideal for medical students, therapists, researchers interested in health, humor, and medical care; healthcare professionals; humor researchers; along with practitioners, academicians, and students looking for a deeper understanding of the role humor can play as well as guidance as to the effective and meaningful use of humor in medical/healthcare settings.

Prescription for Disaster

Author: Candace Lafleur
Publisher: CreateSpace
ISBN: 9781499595710
Category : Humor
Languages : en
Pages : 338

Book Description
A book about the hilarious side of being ridiculously diseased - laughing through life and encouraging others to do the same. This is not a book about a disease itself, nor does it have any 'woe is me' or forced epiphanies on the meaning of life and health. It's a book about sobbing student nurses wielding sharp needles, falling hospital elevators, having to be surgically removed from your own sweater for an X-ray and support group brawls. About getting my whole family pulled off into a cement bunker at British customs for being more radioactive than a truck full of Russian nails. It's about sneaking nachos into the hospital at seven in the morning and making sweet, sweet love to the back of a parked taxi while having a stroke. This is a book about laughing and joyfully embracing the bizarre and the truly funny side of being ridiculously, incurably diseased. So sit back, take a hit off your oxygen tank and get ready to laugh at the funny side of falling apart. At the very least you'll never look at a bed pan or an IV pole the same way again.

The Laughter Prescription

Author: Laurence J. Peter
Publisher: Ballantine Books
ISBN: 9780345353337
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 244

Book Description

Humor and the Healing Arts

Author: Athena du Pré
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1135684405
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 219

Book Description
Offering a social scientific look at humor's role in medical transactions, this volume is based on extensive field study in seven medical settings. It includes excerpts from dozens of actual conversations between patients and caregivers. Analysis of these episodes reveals that humor is a practical tool used to meet many medical objectives. It is used by patients to good-naturedly complain and to campaign for more personal attention, and by caregivers to get attention, make amends, insist on unpleasant routines, and establish rapport. Examining humor from many angles, the book begins with a phenomenological analysis of the essence of funny. This section describes what makes some things funny but not others, and how to distinguish between potentially funny and unfunny episodes in medical situations. From an ethnographic perspective, joking around is shown to be a persuasive element of medical culture. Examples illustrate how patients and caregivers use humor to negotiate the dialectics between helping and hurting, and individuality and compliance. Additionally, a close-up look at three medical transactions shows how humor is used to help a physical therapy patient overcome fear and queasiness, reduce the embarrassment of a mammography, and defuse a potential conflict between a student aide and a young patient. A final section examines techniques for initiating conversational humor. In sum, this volume provides an intimate and realistic look at medical conversations as they are conducted every day. It serves as a valuable complement to health communication texts and offers information of interest to health communication scholars, healthcare practitioners, and anyone interested in the effects and techniques of conversational humor. Richly grounded in naturally occurring data, the book can be understood and used effectively by both scholars and practitioners.

The Positive Psychology of Laughter and Humour

Author: Freda Gonot-Schoupinsky
Publisher: Emerald Group Publishing
ISBN: 1837538344
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 185

Book Description
Drawing on the authors’ diverse backgrounds and expertise, this is the first academic volume dedicated to the rarely discussed topic of laughter and humour in positive psychology.

Write Your Own Pleasure Prescription

Author: Paul Pearsall
Publisher: Hunter House
ISBN: 9780897932295
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 228

Book Description
Offers sixty suggestions for bringing back small, everyday pleasures intone's life to restore it's balance, and describes the five Polynesian keys to happy life.

Airport & Aviation Humor

Author: Barney Smith
Publisher: Xlibris Corporation
ISBN: 1453535241
Category : Humor
Languages : en
Pages : 125

Book Description
I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to share the lighter side of airport and aviation employees. The vast majority of people I encountered at the airport [from all classes and careers], enjoyed humor. Additionally, I found that the average person can recognize the difference between fact and fiction, truth and lies and more importantly, humor versus sarcasm. As I mentioned earlier, humor has been determined to be a stress reducer, and often, a means of increasing morale. Remember, I referred to actual passengers and employees in trying to encourage the innocent while protecting the guilty.

365 Prescriptions for the Soul

Author: Dr. Bernie S. Siegel
Publisher: New World Library
ISBN: 1577317009
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 385

Book Description
Dr. Bernie Siegel writes with humorous, down-to-earth wisdom that has improved the lives of countless readers. In 365 Prescriptions for the Soul, he treats us to his most user-friendly work of all: daily doses of inspiration and humor that gently and joyfully help us live more peaceful, loving, and fulfilling lives.

Honoring the Medicine

Author: Kenneth S. Cohen
Publisher: Ballantine Books
ISBN: 1984800418
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 459

Book Description
For thousands of years, Native medicine was the only medicine on the North American continent. It is America’s original holistic medicine, a powerful means of healing the body, balancing the emotions, and renewing the spirit. Medicine men and women prescribe prayers, dances, songs, herbal mixtures, counseling, and many other remedies that help not only the individual but the family and the community as well. The goal of healing is both wellness and wisdom. Written by a master of alternative healing practices, Honoring the Medicine gathers together an unparalleled abundance of information about every aspect of Native American medicine and a healing philosophy that connects each of us with the whole web of life—people, plants, animals, the earth. Inside you will discover • The power of the Four Winds—the psychological and spiritual qualities that contribute to harmony and health • Native American Values—including wisdom from the Wolf and the inportance of commitment and cooperation • The Vision Quest—searching for the Great Spirit’s guidance and life’s true purpose • Moontime rituals—traditional practices that may be observed by women during menstruation • Massage techniques, energy therapies, and the need for touch • The benefits of ancient purification ceremonies, such as the Sweat Lodge • Tips on finding and gathering healing plants—the wonders of herbs • The purpose of smudging, fasting, and chanting—and how science confirms their effectiveness Complete with true stories of miraculous healing, this unique book will benefit everyone who is committed to improving his or her quality of life. “If you have the courage to look within and without,” Kenneth Cohen tells us, “you may find that you also have an indigenous soul.”

Prescription for Survival

Author: Bernard Lown
Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Publishers
ISBN: 1576757854
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 461

Book Description
Tells the story of how a group of Soviet and American doctors came together to stop nuclear proliferation and ended up winning the Nobel Peace Prize and influencing the course of history. This book also sheds light on what really drove and still drives the nuclear arms race, and the importance of citizen involvement in social change efforts.