Inappropriate laughter

[Chach]

Sorry if this has been mentioned recently. I can't keep up with all the posts here.

Winnie mentioned inappropriate laughter in another thread and I know I do this too, but I can't explain why I do it, which makes it hard to do anything about it. Can anyone explain?

[Lunarsea]

Originally Posted by Chach

Sorry if this has been mentioned recently. I can't keep up with all the posts here.

Winnie mentioned inappropriate laughter in another thread and I know I do this too, but I can't explain why I do it, which makes it hard to do anything about it. Can anyone explain?

What do you mean? smile or laugh when you shouid not or want to do the opposite or doing it yet you do not know why or ???

[Chach]

Originally Posted by Lunarsea

What do you mean? smile or laugh when you shouid not or want to do the opposite or doing it yet you do not know why or ???

Yes, all of those. Often I don't realise I'm doing it until the conversation ends and I wonder why my cheeks are aching.

[Chach]

Originally Posted by Mel

In other words it can help cope with the stress we sometimes feel.

Thanks Mel.

So I just have to make sure I never feel stressed.

[givusabud]

Hi Chach
I'm not sure i'm right, but i seem to remember you are a fellow blusher? If so, i would suggest that this may be a reason for your unwanted smiling, because when someone is talking there's every chance that they may be looking at you, and eye contact is something blushers feel uncomfortable with.
I tend to find that if i smile at someone while they are talking to me, it helps both parties relax and the person talking feels comfortable that you are happy to listen to him/her. This in turn makes me feel more comfortable that i'm not going to get embarrassed in front of them.
If i'm wrong about you being a blusher i apologise, but i still think a smile helps to relax the situation regardless.

[Winnie57]

This subject came up at my group therapy session on Tuesday when I was smiling and laughing a little bit while I was describing quite an unhappy situation.

The therapist challenged me as to why I was laughing and I came up with that the laughing stopped me feeling too upset and it lightened the mood because I found the subject difficult to talk about.

Another kind of inappropriate laughter came when I was doing the public speaking exercise at the social practice session I went to last week. I can't really explain why it happened but it was quite a humorous poem I was reading but my cheeks were burning and the laughing made me more embarrassed. I wasn't laughing at the poem, I was laughing out of anxiety and embarrassment. It was just really silly because you wouldn't expect a 49-year-old to break out into laughter like this - it's more like schoolgirl behaviour.

[ShyDoll]

I tend to laugh when i'm nervous. Most the time its pretty harmless but if its right after someones said something a bit sad/unhappy/serious it can seem innapropriate :-s

Originally Posted by ShyDoll

I tend to laugh when i'm nervous. Most the time its pretty harmless but if its right after someones said something a bit sad/unhappy/serious it can seem innapropriate :-s

Yup, same here. I've had a problem with nervous laughter since my teens. I used to worry that I came across as a right cold-hearted bitch but these days if I do start laughing in an inappropriate way I am quick to apologise and explain that I am prone to nervous laughter. My family and friends all know about it so don't make me feel bad about it. I laughed at the fall of a family member once but I was actually very worried about them It's almost as if the response gets mixed up in my brain, something has triggered an emotional response but I give the wrong one.

[slrrrrp]

hahahahahahaha!

[slrrrrp]

oops!

[Heaven]

Sometimes something bad happens e.g. someone trips over, and I want to laugh. Bad, I guess.

[Chach]

Originally Posted by Heaven

Sometimes something bad happens e.g. someone trips over, and I want to laugh. Bad, I guess.

You're probably thinking: "I'm glad it wasn't me."

[timmyb]

I have a tendency to laugh when things become overwhelming.When the twin towers collapsed I was standing outside Dixons with about a dozen other people and couldn't stop myself laughing.One other person there burst into tears which seemed more appropriate but she was probably feeling a very similar emotion.
This tendency even applies when bad things happen to me.

[Chach]

Givusabud: I probably do blush but it's not something that bothers me. I do have a problem with eye contact. And I agree. Generally when I smile, people smile back and it helps to relax the situation.

Unfortunately, smiling isn't always appropriate.