Healing through laughter: Humorist lifting Veteran spirits
Moultrie News August 19, 2024
Twenty years in the U.S. Army, including five deployments in Afghanistan and Iraq, offered retired Lt. Col. Robin Johnson a first-hand look at the mental and physical hardships of her fellow military brethren. Shortly after returning to civilian life, the Ohio native decided it was time to use her gift of humor to sprinkle joy into the lives of those battling depression and other conditions, as she detailed to a packed audience at the Aug. 15 Mount Pleasant Chamber of Commerce Luncheon.
During her presentation at the Omar Shrine Temple, Johnson, a married mother of two daughters, filled in community business reps on how she was impacted by the suicide death of an Army comrade, which sparked a determination to tackle the crisis head-on.
"I said: 'This is not okay.' I've lost more friends to suicide than combat," said Johnson, who made it her goal to be part of the solution.
The Mount Pleasant resident went on to launch HEAL*ARIOUS, a 501-c-3 nonprofit providing therapeutic humor for improved psychological performance.
To that end, she also collaborates with mental health clinicians to develop customized programming for Veterans, first responders and corporate audiences.
"It's not just a Veteran issue, it's not. People are stressed out. I [saw] it in the Wando (High School) drop-off this morning. People are stressed out; we're all working; we're just doing our best — we're all trying to make it. And it's even not just a Mount Pleasant problem. This is a global crisis with mental health," she said while also identifying depression as the No. 1 cause of suicide.
A build-up of negative thoughts, Johnson noted, can sometimes push people over the deep end. But unlike communicating the choking sign when someone has a chunk of steak lodged in their throat, there is no universal sign or gesture for individuals plagued by the silent killer known as depression.
Laughter, she concluded, is the Heimlich maneuver for the anguished brain.
Currently, the local entertainer is performing her humor-based work at the Ralph Johnson VA Medical Center in Charleston at no cost to Veterans.
Johnson described how she restores tormented souls by turning their dilemmas into jokes or quick one-liners.
Further, she isn't afraid of discussing death by putting a humorous spin on the taboo topic. The standup specialist proceeded to talk about her own demise by voicing her request for margaritas, tacos and a deejay at her funeral. Johnson also welcomes being roasted, she added, since her body will already be cremated.
Cremation is a must, noted self-deprecating humorist, since it's her best chance of ever attaining a smoking hot body.
While spitting out her quips and witty observations at rapid-fire pace, Johnson contemplated the joys of being a Lowcountry resident, including running into alligators in your backyard.
The guest speaker further observed how her punctual military nature doesn't quite jibe with one of her friends who's chronically tardy.
"She's late all the time. She identifies as late; her pronouns are: there and almost there."
The amusing repartee hit a crescendo when she spoke about her husband recently complaining about waiting two hours to get on a five-minute ride at Disney World.
"We've been married for 22 years and all I ever get are five-minute rides," she responded with her spouse in the audience.
Johnson concluded her spiel by reporting plans to develop a comedy-based healing program for high school students.
"I know you guys have seen in the news the increase of fentanyl and drug use. A lot of that stems from unresolved mental issues, so I really want to get ahead of that and give them this as an outlet. I think for that age group, it's probably going to be more designed as a good comedy workshop, or like a comedy boot camp ... because it's a little bit more digestible."
