Laughing at Ourselves for Wellness

by: Mark Therrien, MSW

One thing that I know for sure is that sooner or later we are all going to do or say something stupid. It is just part of being human.

I often have people in small groups share their most embarrassing moments. It is amazing how many women think they are the only ones to have ever used the restroom and tucked their skirt into their pantyhose and walked out into the office, or, as one women told me, down the long narrow aisle of a crowded airplane. In this exercise, we share not only our stupidity, but our humanity.

I have, not once but twice, gotten on the wrong airplane and gone to the wrong city. Needless to say, I was late getting home. I could have made up excuses like "the conference ran late", but the truth is I made a stupid mistake (although I did have help from flight attendants who took my tickets and looked at my boarding passes). I told the attendant later that if I had known it was that easy to get on the wrong plane, I would have gone some place interesting like Hong Kong.

Over 5,000 young people commit suicide every year. In my work with youth and suicide, I have found that they thought they were not perfect enough or that they had done something so stupid or so embarrassing that no one could ever have done anything so stupid. But until you and I, as the adults in this society, begin to share our own stupid stuff, how will they ever know that ti is perfectly normal to do stupid stuff? Don't suppress or bury them deep; share your stupid times with others, especially the young.

No matter what illness, disease, or handicap you may have, if you can laugh at yourself, you are one of the healthiest people on the planet. When we can laugh at ourselves we can begin to forgive ourselves for not being perfect.

Collette, the French writer, says: "You will do many foolish things, so do them with enthusiasm."

You are funny, even if it's not on purpose. So laugh . . . for all our wellness.

http://www.mgh.org