Ever scrolled Instagram or Reddit and saw posts like.?
‘’Trauma hits like… lol”
“My anxiety is fine laughs nervously”
And we wondered, are we really funny or are we simply scared to be serious
You’re not alone. Generation Z was born in a world where mental health is present but discussing pain still isn’t very natural. Instead, many of us have made jokes about it, and ironically, this feels safe.
Humor Isn’t Random; It’s a Coping Strategy
Humor isn’t just making light of things and finding all the humor within a situation. Humor is actually a coping mechanism, a way that our brains attempt to deal with strong emotions without being swamped by them. Laughter actually releases stress-reducing chemicals in the brain.
That Smartmag article talks about why small triggers cause big reactions, which connects directly to:
- emotional overload
- stress responses
- coping behaviors like humor
Dark humor is always going to be a means of defusing both the threat and the stress of a traumatic memory for folks who are working through trauma as a living process.
All the time, people on Reddit discuss just that. Some claim that joking about their trauma makes them less scared, and others say it might help them bond with people who have gone through something similar.
There's a Dual Nature to These Jokes
Well, here’s where it gets complicated. Humor can help us get through excruciating pain. Humor can make it easier to discuss in-between things. Humor can bring us together as individuals who have gone through a struggle together.
But it can also mask the emotion that we really need to be working with. Humor can keep us from asking for the help we truly need. Humor can keep others from understanding when we’re simply not doing well.
This balance is what makes humor about trauma so powerful and confusing.
The Mask We Wear
We make jokes about trauma today because most of us didn’t learn how to say I’m hurting out loud. Vulnerability is still a weakness. We get likes and shares for every dark relatable line we post to social media.
Which is why we laugh before the pain gets louder than our jokes. It is not that we are cold. It is that it can feel unsafe to even bring it up in most circles.
When Humor Helps and When It Hurts
Of course, there’s one crucial difference
When humor heals
- It helps you feel connected
- It enables you to seek perspective
- It doesn’t stop you from talking about emotions
- It assists you in processing without becoming overwhelmed
Along with humor, grounding practices like spending time in nature can also calm the nervous system and make emotional processing feel safer.
When humor hides
- It becomes the default way of talking about pain
- You avoid deeper emotion
- You make jokes rather than opening up
Humor acts as armor, though that armor might hold you back from seeking actual healing.
Being Funny Doesn’t Mean Being Okay
Another misconception is that if an individual can make jokes out of what happened to him or her, then that individual must be over it. That is false.
However, many individuals use humor spontaneously, often unconsciously, as it gives them a sense of being ‘alive’ in an immediate way.
Laughter, however, is not a sign of health, it is a sign of human survival instinct.
Real Talk for Real Readers
If you find that you, or your friends, joke about trauma, do not judge yourself. That’s normal. However, do not stop asking deeper questions. What are you joking about instead, and why?
Humor may be a travel companion to the path of healing, but it shouldn’t be the only voice we listen to.
At the end of the day, laughter can create connections, but honesty can create healing.
