While Huntington’s can be a very serious and depressing topic, there can still be some amusing aspects to it. This is NOT true for every family or every person who has HD, but I am the type of person who likes to find the bright side of things. Sometimes, to me, HD provides comedy gold. Let me just put this disclaimer out there: I am not by any means trying to make fun of or belittle anyone with Huntington’s disease. It is a serious topic and I take it seriously. Ok, with that out of the way, here is why I feel HD can be funny from time to time.
Some of the falls and accidents are so spectacular, that without HD they honestly would not be possible. Before you get mad and say “that’s not nice!” Let me provide an example. Once, my mother was going down the stairs carrying her dinner plate and a cup, and she slipped and fell down the stairs. The amazing part, was that even though she fell down three or four stairs, she managed not to drop her plate or water and didn’t even spill a drop! She was bruised but ok, so all we could really do was laugh. The number of times she has set the car alarm off is pretty high. I have started shouting “we found the car!” Every time she does it; I’m pretty sure people think we are crazy. Another time, my uncle was using the public bathroom. He had a movement while he was in the bathroom stall and ended up in the hospital. His movement caused him to nearly break his nose and get a black eye within the small confines of the stall. He literally got in a fight with a public toilet and lost.
The kind of scenarios that occur with HD are by no means beautiful or graceful. They can, in fact, be really horrifying and frightening to watch; it is one of the many reasons people with HD are secretive about it. I have found, however, that laughter makes people more comfortable and happier. It is certainly not true of all people with HD and laughter would mortifying and anger most. But in these kinds of situations, you can either laugh or cry. I have cried enough for this disease, so I am choosing to laugh. It makes the burdens easier to bear and makes the time we have together filled with laughter and not tears.
sleepdeprivedmommyoftwo 