If it’s true that laughter is the best medicine, then having a clown doctor visit you in hospital is the way to go! There are no words to describe the magic and connection that can happen during a clown doctor visit. Here are just a few to describe this short but sweet experience from behind the red nose while working with UK charity, Kissing It Better, last month.
There are a lot of rules around clown doctoring, with good reason. Such as rules about hygiene, rules about who to visit and who not to visit and rules about giving the child all the power. The clown doctor takes all his or her cues from the child; from permission to enter the room, to the name of the finger puppet, to the choice of story. In essence, the child leads the play. This is very important in a hospital environment where many children are trapped in beds or small rooms, isolated from other children and sometimes without parents. The sensitivity of the clown doctor cannot be underestimated. Clown doctoring requires deep listening and playfulness in a delicate balance… oh and bubbles.
One particular experience really moved me. From afar, the child in the bed looked nine years old but very quickly I realized there was something seriously wrong. This little girl’s head was tightly bandaged, she couldn’t talk and she seemed to be lost in her own world. The only word she could say was ‘No’, which she did in the most melodic ethereal way. Her grandfather was there, guiding me through the visit with gentle encouragement. It took absolute presence and listening to sense what this little girl wanted and needed. We had to learn how to communicate with each other. It seemed bubbles and music hit the spot. Her grandfather watched with watery eyes. Afterwards he told me she had been in hospital for 3 months and it was the best he had seen her. What seemed like tiny steps were, in fact, huge. I couldn’t stop thinking about her all week and I added a few things to my box of tricks with her in mind. But when I got there the following week, her room was empty. My heart leapt for a moment. Had she got better and gone home? The nurses told me she had been moved to a rehabilitation centre. Although it was such a fleeting moment, I will always remember the look in her eyes and the special connection we made.
There are a lot of rules around clown doctoring, with good reason. Such as rules about hygiene, rules about who to visit and who not to visit and rules about giving the child all the power. The clown doctor takes all his or her cues from the child; from permission to enter the room, to the name of the finger puppet, to the choice of story. In essence, the child leads the play. This is very important in a hospital environment where many children are trapped in beds or small rooms, isolated from other children and sometimes without parents. The sensitivity of the clown doctor cannot be underestimated. Clown doctoring requires deep listening and playfulness in a delicate balance… oh and bubbles.
One particular experience really moved me. From afar, the child in the bed looked nine years old but very quickly I realized there was something seriously wrong. This little girl’s head was tightly bandaged, she couldn’t talk and she seemed to be lost in her own world. The only word she could say was ‘No’, which she did in the most melodic ethereal way. Her grandfather was there, guiding me through the visit with gentle encouragement. It took absolute presence and listening to sense what this little girl wanted and needed. We had to learn how to communicate with each other. It seemed bubbles and music hit the spot. Her grandfather watched with watery eyes. Afterwards he told me she had been in hospital for 3 months and it was the best he had seen her. What seemed like tiny steps were, in fact, huge. I couldn’t stop thinking about her all week and I added a few things to my box of tricks with her in mind. But when I got there the following week, her room was empty. My heart leapt for a moment. Had she got better and gone home? The nurses told me she had been moved to a rehabilitation centre. Although it was such a fleeting moment, I will always remember the look in her eyes and the special connection we made.