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Giggling GurusBy Donna Cutting It's been a long time since I’ve laughed. Thank you.” This came from a stately gentleman named Albert. Just last year, Albert and his beautiful wife reigned as King and Queen of the Sweetheart Ball. Shortly thereafter, she passed away, leaving him alone at the Lodge at Mainlands in Pinellas Park, Fla., the assisted living community where he still resides. “It’s true,” says Cindy Allen, activities coordinator at the Lodge. “He really hasn’t laughed much since his wife died...until today.” Today Albert and 30 or so other residents of the Lodge were chortling, chuckling, hooting, hollering, and aloha-ha-ha-ing all over the activities room. Staff members couldn’t resist peeking in as their elder friends participated in their first Laughter Club session. Laughter Clubs are the brainchild of Dr. Mandan Kataria of India. Kataria is said to be the first physician to write laughter prescriptions for his patients as an antidote for stress. A champion of laughing one’s way to health, he developed laughter exercises. Participants noticed that simulated laughter stimulated real laughter and all of the good feelings that go along with it. Ohio psychologist and humorist Steve Wilson met Kataria and experienced Laughter Clubs first hand on a 1998 visit to Bombay. Excited, Wilson formed the World Laughter Tour, bringing Dr. Kataria to the United States to teach his laughter method. As one resident in Country Meadows assisted living community in Allentown, Pa. asked incredulously, “She went to school to learn this???” Yes. Activities coordinators, recreation therapists, humorists and other future giggling gurus attend a two-day training to learn everything from the history of the movement, to the benefits of laughter, and the laughter exercises themselves. They emerge Certified Laughter Leaders and are sanctioned to lead clubs for the young and old and young at heart. Now Laughter Clubs are springing up all over the country and especially in assisted living centers. And why not? As Kathy Hummel, executive director of the Lodge at Mainlands says, “Our residents have had so many losses and can have a tendency to focus on the negative. Once we get them up and laughing though, they’re not focused on their depression anymore.” The benefits of laughter are numerous and have received much attention since Dr. Norman Cousins’ groundbreaking autobiographical book, Anatomy of an Illness as Perceived by the Patient. Cousins credits much of his comeback from a crippling disease to the power of laughter. Since then, researchers have studied laughter to find it stimulates the thymus gland thereby activating the immune system, releases muscular tension, and causes the heart rate to increase and then settle back to normal levels all while creating a cardiovascular-type workout. In fact, Dr. William Fry, emeritus associate clinical professor in psychiatry for Stanford University, has been quoted as comparing 100 good belly laughs to the cardiovascular workout of 10 minutes on a rowing machine. (This author knows which one she chooses!) Perhaps more to the point, in a study funded by Rider University, Dr. Nancy Westburg surveyed 24 residents and 21 staff members of an assisted living facility and found that “almost three-fourths of the respondents said they would feel better if they laughed and played more.” Laughter Clubs are one way to assist residents in finding the funny side of life. Humor can also be used by all assisted living employees to help lighten the load. One administrator provided her entire staff with kazoos. Housekeepers, maintenance men and dining room servers performed their job duties while at the same time humming tunes to the great amusement of the residents. A bus driver at one community decorates his bus for every holiday and has the whole place in smiles. Hope Rice, regional activities director for Country Meadows assisted living in Hershey, Pa. carries a red clown nose wherever she goes. “I have one at home, in my car, in my office, and in my purse. Whenever a resident is faced with an unpleasant task such as taking medication or being assisted in the shower, I whip out my nose and put it on. They are immediately riveted to the nose, begin laughing, and it makes the difficult moment easier for everyone.” Shawn Baldus, former activities coordinator had everyone laughing when she hosted a “kiss a pig” contest. Residents squealed with delight when they got to vote on which department head would have to kiss a neighborhood pig! Brent Lill can often be found walking the hallways of Country Meadows in Allentown, Pa., balancing a bowl on his head. The activities coordinator who doubles as a professional magician suggests using mild shock value to get the giggling going. He’s been known to stick his foot in the middle of a painting during art class, play rap music during morning exercises, and substitute a crazy golf ball for a real one during a golfing activity. The residents who Lill serves never know what he’ll do next, but they are laughing almost constantly.
Donna Cutting is an employee spirit expert, an activities consultant and a certified laughter leader. She speaks nationally to elder care professionals about boosting employee morale, humor and outrageous activities programming. She can be reached via her web site at www.donnacutting.com. For more information: World Laughter Tour Association for Applied and
Therapeutic Humor The Humor Project
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It’s not difficult to add laughter to an assisted living resident’s day, but
it’s immensely important. As Howard, a resident at the Lodge stated, “Laughter
is funny, relaxing and enjoyable.” Mary, sitting not far away piped in with
“It’s the laughter we share here that keeps us from crying.” |
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