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In Bristol, England, doctors have added a new, rather special treatment to some of their prescriptions: acting lessons. Intended for trauma patients, these sessions are being tested by the English public health system, with the help of professional actors, throughout the month of January.
Can laughter heal? This is the bet launched by the NHS, the United Kingdom’s public health system since January 1, 2022 in the city of Bristol, in the south-west of England. Entitled “Comedy on Referral”, this program offers doctors to prescribe comedy lessons to patients suffering from trauma. The aim is to help these people see the “fun side” of their experience, underlines the BBC. This experiment runs until January 31.
Writing workshops and stage plays
People suffering from disorders such as post-traumatic stress, depression or anxiety are affected by this experience. On the program, six weeks of writing workshops to write light texts on their experiences. During these sessions, which are completely free, participants are invited to act out the scenes. “Comedy is a force for good and people don’t realize how much it can change [leur] life“explains the actress Angie Belcher. The comedian and screenwriter explains that comedies come from “trauma, not happy times“. The professional, who has a master’s degree in psychology, helped develop this program with the help of health advisers. According to her, people who follow this program will feel “15 cm taller”.
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Laughter, a natural remedy
Even outside of that kind of therapy,”laughter is perhaps the best natural stress reliever” underlines the doctor Jimmy Mohamed at the microphone of Europe 1. “It will allow us to release hormones, namely endorphins, which will have an anxiolytic and antidepressant action. It also activates the reward circuitry, with dopamine“, specifies the specialist. With age, the daily duration of laughter decreases, going from 300 bursts of laughter in children to 20 in adults. We also know that it is a protective factor. cardiovascular disease!
In France too, doctors understood very early the importance of laughter to help patients get better. This goes through associations like doctor laughter, which has just celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2021. It operates in 55 pediatric departments throughout France. And this is how the 107 comedians of the association, dressed up as clowns, offer laughter and smiles to hospitalized children.