Humor is widely known to be an effective coping mechanism. That’s why memes became an essential part of people’s sanity break during the pandemic, when they needed levity amid the anxiety.
As naturopathic physician and author, Dr. Jared Pistoia points out, humor helps to relieve the burden of stressful emotions.
Dr. Pistoia also mentioned the downsides of using humor as a coping mechanism. These can include self-defeating jokes or aggressive humor that puts others down.
But ultimately, healthy humor styles can help improve communication, especially when it comes to helping others understand a condition like ADHD.
Children with ADHD are also known to be adept at finding the funny in their condition. According to author Kristin Wilcox, who has also studied the condition extensively, it’s because kids with ADHD have the creativity to generate novel ideas more easily.
“If your ADHD child keeps you laughing, it may indicate a high IQ, as several research studies have identified a link between intelligence and humor,” said Wilcox, who wrote the award-winning book Andrew’s Awesome Adventures with His ADHD Brain.
According to the A.D.D. Resource Center, ADHD humor largely stems from emotional sensitivity. It then enhances timing, warmth, and social attunement. Likewise, humor has been found to be helpful for people with ADHD to regulate stress and reframe their challenges.
“Playfulness and authenticity make ADHD humor especially connective,” the excerpt reads.
Given the uniqueness of ADHD humor, Wilcox encourages parents to allow their neurodivergent children to laugh at their mistakes. As she explains, it sends the child a message that they are not defined by their challenges.
“Although ‘sense of humor’ or ‘good at puns’ won’t appear on the list of symptoms, those with ADHD can be great at providing some comic relief,” she said.
