J Korean Acad Nurs.  2011 Jun;41(3):294-301. 10.4040/jkan.2011.41.3.294.

Effects of Laughter Therapy on Postpartum Fatigue and Stress Responses of Postpartum Women

• Shin HS
• Ryu KH
• Song YA

• KMID: 1015479
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4040/jkan.2011.41.3.294

Abstract

PURPOSE
The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of laughter therapy on postpartum fatigue and stress respon-ses of postpartum women.
METHODS
The research design was a nonequivalent control group non-synchronized design. The participants were 67 postpartum women who agreed to participate in this study, selected by convenience sampling: (experiment group-33 and control group-34). The data were collected from August 5 to September 30, 2010. The experimental group received laughter therapy from a laughter therapy expert for 60 min, twice a week for 2 weeks, a total of 4 sessions. To evaluate the effects of laughter therapy, postpartum fatigue by self-report questionnaire and cortisol concentration in breast milk were measured. The data were analyzed using the SPSS WIN 13.0 Program.
RESULTS
The first hypothesis that "the degree of postpartum fatigue in the experimental group participating in laughter therapy would be lower than that of the control group" was accepted. These findings indicate that laughter therapy has a positive effect on decreasing postpartum fatigue.
CONCLUSION
The finding provides evidence for use of complementary and alternative nursing in Sanhujori facilities and obstetric units to reduce postpartum women's fatigue.

Keyword

Laughter therapy; Fatigue; Cortisol; Postpartum women

MeSH Terms

Adult
Fatigue/*therapy
Female
Humans
Hydrocortisone/analysis
*Laughter Therapy
Milk, Human/chemistry
Postpartum Period
Questionnaires
Stress, Psychological/*therapy

Figure

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  Figure 1 Change of postpartum fatigue by time. Exp.=experimental group; Cont.=control group.

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  Figure 2 Change of cortisol concentration in breast milk by time. Exp.=experimental group; Cont.=control group.

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