My daughter has just photocopied her head. I nearly lost the ability to breath I was laughing so much. ‘The giggles’ is something I have suffered from since I was a small child. It is a debilitating condition that can strike at any time, usually totally inappropriately, and as far as I am aware there is no cure. As a child grows with this condition it is assumed that they will learn to control themselves and be aware of the signs of an imminent episode. The heart starts to race, the body temperature rises, there can be signs of sweat and the person begins to look uncomfortable. Quite often the surrounding public are shrouded in a collective look of disapproval. These are all classic signs. My mother also suffers from this condition so I blame her totally. My Dad never understood it and used to get quite cross when Mum and I had simultaneous attacks. Thankfully my husband is slightly more tolerant and just ‘tuts’ quietly when I am in the grips of a more serious bout.
There are certain triggers that must be avoided at all costs. Libraries, school musical concerts and church services all seem to be places of danger. I was once at a very formal wedding in Ireland where half way through the service it transpired that the groom’s mother was to sing a solo. She was terrible and tuneless but what she lacked in technique and ability she made up for with good Irish welly. Unfortunately these attributes combined served to trigger a rather serious episode. Now any normal person would have departed, stealth like, from the church for the fresh Irish air of the graveyard but unfortunately it was too late and the tears were already rolling down my cheeks taking my carefully applied make up with them. My saving grace was that I was wearing a very large brimmed hat so sliding down into my pew and stuffing a sodden hankie in my mouth I hid below my head gear and managed to look like I was overcome with the emotion of the day.
The condition can also be quite contagious and I have found, especially in the company of my close, mildly pickled, girlfriends, that one episode can quite quickly spread through the collective and cause an epidemic. There is no malice in this condition and no harm will come to the sufferers or the general public but please be aware that for a short period of time it can be quite paralysing and whilst we will eventually come round to some sort of normality it is imperative that we are left to see the episode through. Disapproval is futile and pointless and may only serve to make matters worse. There are many sufferers of the giggles worldwide however I might suggest we are all the richer for a bit of humour even sometimes in the most inappropriate places.
Finally I would like to take the opportunity to say Happy Birthday to one of my dearest friends. Whilst she is lovely and beautiful in every way she suffers from the afore mentioned condition and I fear my friendship with her may have made things worse. The details of the night with a six foot plastic penguin and the traffic cone will be taken to the grave. Lynne (aka Hinge) – I love you and wish you the best birthday ever. x