Humour as a defence
Dr Raviteja Innamuri
Founder and Consultant Psychiatrist, Ananda Mind Care
Ex-Faculty CMC Vellore
Humans are arguably the most intelligent creatures on planet Earth. We have managed to destroy much of our home with environmental pollutants calling for significant changes to prevent catastrophic events. Our greed and chase for the green notes/currency has been so great that we are the only species on this planet which need currency to feed our tummies while the rest of the animals seem to simply partake in the food cycle. We have made magnificent discoveries, and science inventions in the field of science but remain one of the only world species that become victim to major natural disasters while many of the other world creatures seem more in tune with nature. We live a life of hypocrisy in almost every way possible – from teaching our children how GOD created this big beautiful world while sending them to the best schools to be taught about the Big Bang theory. Our biggest industry is the weapons industry, designed to defend or attack other fellow humans. For all these reasons and many others, the hesitancy to procreate/have children and the DINK concept (Dual income, no kids) should not be a surprise, as it is to many.
Perhaps, we are also one of the only species who experience emotional crises like no other. We are constantly fighting in our minds (a perpetual battlefield that doesn’t appear in the news), as we are constantly trying to resolve conflicts because of the values, rituals, hierarchy and systems we have built our society. If you are wondering, the fight is between the ID and the SUPEREGO – the result is the definition of who we are – every decision and every act of our life is a culmination of this conflict, resulting in the EGO that defines WHO WE ARE. Sigmund Freud, a neurologist, perhaps with the help of little coke discovered this and revolutionised the field of mental health.
This tension in our subconscious mind is constant and for every decision made. The ID, often referred to as the ‘bad guy/the animal’ full of our primitive desires and wants. The SUPEREGO on the other side is the ‘good/angel-like’ mostly formed by the moral training of our early caregivers telling us what is good and bad. So, as we understand, the world is full of contradictions and conflicts, more inwards than outwards, as every decision that appears in our conscious mind has to first go through a battle in the subconscious. Life then seems simple – a dance of the ID and SUPEREGO.
When Sadguru or Gutman while talking about the most serious matters of spirituality or Gut science suddenly break into humour by taking the name of Shankaran Pillai or Saravana Kumar, we understand the beautiful power of humour to lighten up anyone’s mood. The best form of humour we often enjoy these days is stand-up, which has recently picked up in India. Many of them use themselves as the object of comedy unless it’s a roast of someone with consent. Otherwise usually not considered or given a thought about – comedians are highly aware and psychologically minded folks, using humour as a defence for many of the traumas life offers. When I heard about the suicide of the famous comedian Robin Williams, it made no sense to me. It only makes sense when one can see the abyss of depression masked in humour- to address the angst of life.
Laughter clubs should be more popular and abundant than they are. And research comes to support this. Laugher utilises so many muscles of our face, burns calories and in the right context, builds social bonds. It allows us to live longer and happier. So the next time you have a choice of humour, take a leap of faith and simply laugh and disperse the tensions away. The only warning is not to constantly use it as a defence/distraction/diversion for serious matters of life that need a head-on collision to resolve the matter of concern.
Some interesting humour from my MBBS days in medical school. Being privileged to be taught by some of the finest faculty, I fondly remember some of the many laughs. I hope you enjoy them as well.
1. The Endocrinology class went ‘blank’.
“That’s why I always said, we shouldn’t be having a Stethoscope as our symbol; rather a Ryle’s tube would suit better.”
The class is still; blank.
– Dr Muralidhar Varma D, Additional Professor KMC-Manipal, on spoon-feeding college education.
p.s. Ryle’s tube (rylz) n. a thin flexible tube of rubber or plastic, which is inserted into the stomach through the mouth or nose of a patient and is used for withdrawing fluid from the stomach or for giving a test meal. [ J. A. Ryle (1889–1950), British physician]
2. ”Statistics are like Bikinis; they never reveal the most important things!”
-Dr. Murlidhar Varma, Faculty, KMC-Manipal on the deceivable nature of neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio. . .
3. “There are 3 kinds of lies-
Lies,
Damned lies and
Statistics
-Dr. Asha Kamath @ Bio Statistics introduction class
From the back benches: ” Head lice, body lice. . .”
4. “Sure. This is the last slide.
I’m just going in the reverse order.”
-Dr. Sudhir Nayak, Faculty, Manipal
5. The reality of life-
“Diseases do not read textbooks. Only we do.”
6. ‘When you are deprived of your normal supply of microbes, the immune systems get a poor education.’
-Dr. Muralidhar Varma D, Faculty, KMC-Manipal
7. ”I want to ‘hear’ him ‘think’.”
-Dr. Suresh Pillai; to a student shakin’ his head to every question
8. “It’s got Menthol. It goes to places you have never known to exist. It doesn’t open up your nose. You just feel it does.”
-Dr. Suresh Pillai on Vicks inhaler.
9. “Doctors, learn to err on the safer side. Anything you do not know, blame it on the genes.”
-Akaash Vaani; the voice from the skies
10. “What makes me more wise than that guy begging on the street? Is it me knowing, that an Amoeba exists!?!
-Dr Raviteja Innamuri
