subject: Authenticity And Comedy [print this page] "How can a psychologist of 30 years not have even heard of emetophobia? Even if she then googled it, to laught at anyone's phobia is completely unprofessional and ignorant. Just goes to show credentials don't often equate to intelligence."
- Felix Economakis
I'm proud today. I was just listening to a webinar the other day, about the shift in the awareness our world currently is going through. What people more than anything desires these days, is not always credibility. It's authenticity. To become real and rely on others real. In the rough or not, what people really want is diamonds.
Publishing an ebook about my phobia is the most couragious thing I've ever done. It is also the craziest and silliest thing I've done so far. Or no, but one of them. Have to admit that my sense of humour is pitchblack. But it has saved me several times over, and still does. I cannot think of a better form of stress-management than laughter. The neurochemicals generated in the brain from a good laugh is priceless. On top of everything, my sense of humour can be extremely dry as well, which makes the whole situation even more humiliating.
The term Black Comedy or Gallows Humour is most commonly referred to difficult subjects like death or disease, things like most people doesn't think is funny at all, or even inappropriate to laugh about. However, even grand old papa of psychoanalysis Sigmund Freud stated that there really is no such thing as non-black comedy. All humour is from the beginning, or in its core, dark. We identify and sympathize with the victim. Or any awkward situation. It's not about laughing at. That is sarcasm (obviously even preformed by educated and experienced psychologists) distance or just complete resistance to understand something unfamiliar. It's about laughing with. Do you see the difference? That comes from a place of honest insight and empathy and works as a relief from tension or even pain.
Humour is the all time universal medicine from fear. The best way of killing a demon is ridiculing it. It's no picnic for many of us though, I know that. But some people even manage to fool death, and survive trauma, just by making sick jokes. It's how powerful humour is. Self sympathy raising over self pity. As I'm writing right now, I cannot think of a greater empowerment than that. I cannot think of a greater disadvantage than laughing at others vulnerabilities right in their frightened and exposed faces either.
Or listen to this, it's one of my favourites. I hear about it a lot in forums. For one moment first please just put yourself in the clothes of someone than has gone completely disabled in everyday life, and finally has managed to gather all the tiny little courage, confidence and trust that is left, if any, to look for help. When you arrive the therapist, degree of education insignificant, starts to ask you: "Why are you afraid of vomiting? It is something natural." As a client or patient I'm just thinking: Isn't that my question?
Now when we have cleared everything out so well, I just want to leave you with some additional content to the ebook "How To Handle Emetophobia". EXTRA BONUS RELEASE; more things that you don't want to know about me anyway:
BONUS 1. As a pedestrian I can be at risk and a danger in traffic because I'm constantly scanning the pavements for vomits instead of watching out, to insure myself I don't step in one of those jeopardizing fate in bringing a stomach infection to the floor of my home (which is useless anyway because the far greatest majority of them is just a result of alcohol and non-contagious).
BONUS 2. A tuesday morning the 19th of April this year 2011, in duty as a care giver in social service, I was forced to take care of an old lady sick from a stomach flu. I just went there like a soldier and emptied her bucket and everything. Was forced to visit her twice as well. The magic of gloves? I have still no idea how I managed to do it. Had nightmares about the bucket months after that. I remember the best day of this year so far too, but I don't remember the date of it.
