Is Humor Okay for Grieving Families?

Short answer: Yes! Humor plays a well documented role in easing the anxiety and distress experienced by the patient, family, and staff from the emotionally demanding situation of end-of-life care. Erma Bomback advised, “If you can’t make it better, you can laugh at it!.” For caretaking staff members, humor is a good way to distance oneself from difficult situations, connect with co-workers and provide mutual support, and reduce tension when things don’t go as well as they could have. Humor also helps staff connect with patients and make them feel cared for as individuals. Making light of potentially embarrassing scenarios such as assistance with toileting can make the situation easier for both the patient and staff. One nurse, while toileting a patient noted, “what comes in, must go out!” which she and the patient had a good laugh over. For family members, laughter after the death of a
loved one may come slowly and infrequently, but like every other emotion experienced in the grieving process, it has its place. One family member noted, “Laughter is a way of lifting that heavy burden of loss if only for a few minutes. It is a wonderful respite.”