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Laughing at 'the wrong time'

Tyrantus1212

An odd dinosaur. Yet a dinosaur.
I have a history of laughing when I really shouldn't be laughing. For example - whenever my parents would read to me. Dad would read me a serious fiction story about a man trying to hunt down a giant worm, but all I thought about was the man and the worm becoming friends and living in a gigantic house together - so instead of paying attention I just laughed. Dad didn't like it and eventually he just stopped reading me that book. Mom would read a story to me about a boy named Dennis, yet for some reason I kept picturing the name Dennis being equivalent to the name Daniel - so in my mind I kept chanting "Daniel!" and just laughing. She eventually stopped reading that to me for, hmmmm, the same reason. I just feel so bad about this; who knows, if only I didn't freaking laugh and let my folks read stories to me in peace I could have had a better zest for reading right now. I hate myself so much for doing this.

Another example (as if the one above isn't enough), around the same times. This one is even worse! During the 6th grade I would always look at the ceiling intercoms because I used to find them funny at one point, and would just walk through the hallways between classes - laughing. This is the part that's actually bad, also from the same school - I used to picture my imaginary friend from earlier childhood just being next to some students in the hallway and laughing as a result (kept remembering that story I made up to explain why he wasn't in the class photo); thus, it may have come off as though I was laughing at them. This was automatic behavior and I had no idea how to stop it. At the same time I used to have this streak where I would tell my parents EVERYTHING I've done at school each day even if it meant getting into trouble, because I had this paranoia that God might send in a prophet to our home who would tell them everything anyway (I don't have that kind of worry anymore). So I just kept telling them about the laughter and that got me into some trouble with them; I was told that if I don't stop this laughter, these students could eventually all gang up on me for constantly "laughing at them" (and I was only picturing that imaginary friend; I don't laugh at people). I got in trouble once again because a student actually asked me "what's so funny?" one day (and I of course recounted that to my parents due to my prophet fear). This did finally go away at some point and I don't even remember how. Doesn't matter, as long as it stopped.

And then there are often random moments where I REMEMBER something funny - let's face it, my mind is always racing. Has this ever happened to anybody, the struggle with the random laughter? I'm always afraid of laughing when I'm at work, for example, due to possibly remembering something funny (because again, my mind is always racing). Please share any insights if you've ever been in a similar spot, or are in such a spot right now. Laughing is supposed to be a good thing, especially for someone like myself who's always down in the dumps - yet somehow I manage to make even that antagonistic.
 
If it comes to my mind and it's funny, I will laugh. Or at least chuckle. I always assumed it was something that could hit anyone, though, just like earworms.
That being said, it takes me a longer time to stop laughing at something funny than most people. Or I'll stop, and start laughing again within mere seconds, then stop again, laugh again, and so on.

My father (also AS) laughs when he watches thrillers & other movies that aren't funny, always during the darkest scenes --and no, he isn't a serial killer in disguise. This is very unsettling for me, and I'm saying that as someone who manages to laugh at funerals :confused:
 
I am so very guilty of this...
I can't even count the number of times I have been somewhere in public, i.e. on a train, in class, in the supermarket, getting my hair cut, at the mall, even at a funeral... and I think of something funny and I laugh. Out loud.
I don't have a quiet laugh at all, I have a full blown hysterical maniac hyena laugh. I don't know how to laugh quietly.
It is so embarrassing. I don't know how to stop doing it either, as every time I think of something funny I erupt into hysterical laughter.
Maybe someone here would know how to keep it under control, but that is definitely not me.
 
I have had a problem with inappropriate laughter for almost as long as I can remember. I do not do it as often now, but probably have not entirely stopped it.

I had a group of understanding roommates who used to ask me what I was laughing about. They usually enjoyed whatever it was as much as I did. One of the things that made me laugh out loud when I thought about it was a good commercial. The Alka Seltzer commercials that were ubiquitous at the time, were enjoyed by all of us, once I pointed them out to the roommates. Here is a link:

 
I always seem to laugh at the most awkward or plain inappropriate things. I remember when one of our chickens died of pneumonia it just sat in its little cardboard box we had kept it in hoping it would recover, fat all rolled out dead and all I could think was it looked like a blob of feathery jelly (jello). So if course I started laughing like a maniac whole everyone else was crying. My parents think I'm psycho now...
 
One of my best friends who's an pair has this problem particularly when is anxious. We have devolved a system that I cover it up when it happens by saying something to distract the person.
 
I will be walking around in public (like at the grocery store) and all of a sudden I will remember a funny meme or Youtube video, or I'll imagine a funny scenario involving my favorite fictional characters, and I will start laughing out loud.

I am also prone to smiling and laughing at serious, sad or even tragic things. I have no idea why I do this but it's certainly not because I find those types of situations funny. The worst offense was the time I started smiling and laughing right after my grandmother's funeral. :coldsweat:
 
I am also prone to smiling and laughing at serious, sad or even tragic things. I have no idea why I do this but it's certainly not because I find those types of situations funny.
I do this as well, and people always think there is something really wrong with me. I also tend to laugh when someone is calling me out on something or yelling at me.
I am a major advocate for kindness to all and I am very against bullying, though I often seem like I think schadenfreude is funny because I laugh at bad things and people getting hurt! :coldsweat: I don't mean to and I don't know why I do it.
 
I do this as well, and people always think there is something really wrong with me. I also tend to laugh when someone is calling me out on something or yelling at me.
I am a major advocate for kindness to all and I am very against bullying, though I often seem like I think schadenfreude is funny because I laugh at bad things and people getting hurt! :coldsweat: I don't mean to and I don't know why I do it.
That reminds me of when I was a kid, I used to laugh hysterically at the scene in the live-action Grinch movie where the young Grinch is being bullied at the Christmas party and has a meltdown. I'm very much anti-bullying and to this day I have no idea why that part always made me laugh. Another inappropriate thing I laugh at is little kids getting punished. I used to laugh whenever my younger brother got punished, and I also laughed quite a bit whenever my nieces and nephews got punished too. Sometimes this would (understandably) earn me a scornful look and a "That's not funny [my name]!" from the parents. :frowning:
 
The psych jargon for inappropriate laughter and other reactions, is "inappropriate response". It can be a problem for others besides Aspies or Auties.

One way u can sometimes stop laughing is to think of something sad and try to picture it. This is especially helpful for events like funerals. Laughing at such events can cause very bad repercussions.
 
my mother had motor neurone disease
it damages the amygdala this part of the brain controls fear and pleasure
so my mother had a condition called emotional lability, that is uncontrolled emotions so she would laugh at inappropriate times or more often cry if you asked her she would say no I didn't want to cry this can also happen because of stress
I have a history of laughing when I really shouldn't be laughing. For example - whenever my parents would read to me. Dad would read me a serious fiction story about a man trying to hunt down a giant worm, but all I thought about was the man and the worm becoming friends and living in a gigantic house together - so instead of paying attention I just laughed. Dad didn't like it and eventually he just stopped reading me that book. Mom would read a story to me about a boy named Dennis, yet for some reason I kept picturing the name Dennis being equivalent to the name Daniel - so in my mind I kept chanting "Daniel!" and just laughing. She eventually stopped reading that to me for, hmmmm, the same reason. I just feel so bad about this; who knows, if only I didn't freaking laugh and let my folks read stories to me in peace I could have had a better zest for reading right now. I hate myself so much for doing this.

Another example (as if the one above isn't enough), around the same times. This one is even worse! During the 6th grade I would always look at the ceiling intercoms because I used to find them funny at one point, and would just walk through the hallways between classes - laughing. This is the part that's actually bad, also from the same school - I used to picture my imaginary friend from earlier childhood just being next to some students in the hallway and laughing as a result (kept remembering that story I made up to explain why he wasn't in the class photo); thus, it may have come off as though I was laughing at them. This was automatic behavior and I had no idea how to stop it. At the same time I used to have this streak where I would tell my parents EVERYTHING I've done at school each day even if it meant getting into trouble, because I had this paranoia that God might send in a prophet to our home who would tell them everything anyway (I don't have that kind of worry anymore). So I just kept telling them about the laughter and that got me into some trouble with them; I was told that if I don't stop this laughter, these students could eventually all gang up on me for constantly "laughing at them" (and I was only picturing that imaginary friend; I don't laugh at people). I got in trouble once again because a student actually asked me "what's so funny?" one day (and I of course recounted that to my parents due to my prophet fear). This did finally go away at some point and I don't even remember how. Doesn't matter, as long as it stopped.

And then there are often random moments where I REMEMBER something funny - let's face it, my mind is always racing. Has this ever happened to anybody, the struggle with the random laughter? I'm always afraid of laughing when I'm at work, for example, due to possibly remembering something funny (because again, my mind is always racing). Please share any insights if you've ever been in a similar spot, or are in such a spot right now. Laughing is supposed to be a good thing, especially for someone like myself who's always down in the dumps - yet somehow I manage to make even that antagonistic.
 
Here is a link to an online psych manual that had stuff in it about inappropriate response:

http://www.mdedge.com/currentpsychi...ks-increasingly-potent-cannabis-joint-effects

When I moved off the original search landing page, it kept wanting to send me to registration page, which assumes that you are some sort of psych. I do not know if you can get past that from this link or not.

I have been thinking about stuff that I ran across due to my own inappropriate response. One of these was laughing at funerals or other events where laughter was inappropriate. My first one of these where I knew something was very wrong was my grandfather's funeral. I could see shocked and ominous looks among other people there. I thought of missing my grandfather and burst into tears right after laughing. The people around me assumed that I was hysterical with grief. Somebody slapped me to stop my "hysterics". Everybody there was okay with the idea of hysterics due to grief.

I do not want to suggest that you lie about hysterics instead of inappropriate response, but it is not as bad to have people thinking of the hysterics instead of laughing. If you think of the people who most love the deceased, letting them think you just had hysterics, instead of them thinking you meant to laugh, then you are also sparing them suffering.

Most people know and understand hysterics, unlike inappropriate response, or the problems that Aspies and Auties have. A funeral is not the best occasion to educate people about our problems.
 
YES! Just last night I was watching a commercial with my siblings and the words and a logo scrolled upward and I just burst out laughing! It was so adorable for NO REASON! I always find things randomly adorable or funny and it seriously tickles me even when it doesn't make any sense.
 
Whenever i hear the phrase "my cup runneth over". i get this picture in my head of someone getting run over by a giant cup, which makes me chuckle. Can be a bad thing, since it's usually said during church services.
I sometimes start laughing during horror/thrillers at the way the future victoms set themselves up to be killed, i actually start rooting for the killer/monster. Dont really like horror movies anyways.
My speech impairment makes me look as though i'm smiling when i say most things, even when i'm serious. People get the wrong idea about that.
 
Oh, Sportster, I know that lonely feeling and those cold stares only too well. Would probably have happened to me, too.
 
Haha oh yeah big time.

Recently, I was at a local play of Romeo and Juliet and the actors were all really terrible. I busted up laughing when mercutio died bc it was all so dramatic and over the top. A few people turned around and looked at me. Oops.

Also, awhile ago, my seamstress ran over her finger with an industrial sewing machine.. blood everywhere... and I laughed before I really processed what was happening. She ended up ok.. it just nicked a blood vessel or something though bc I have never seen so much blood from such a small cut. Thank god for the first aid kit.

So..yes I have a problem with inappropriate laughter.
 
OMG! I do this too. My girlfriend will accuse me of trying to start an argument (or whatever the problem is at the time) and I'll just start smiling and/or laughing, which she takes as proof. I'm so glad I'm not the only person this affects. Like, I don't think it's funny at ALL, but my body isn't responding properly.
I hope some of these replies will help me with this. Thanks, guys!
 
I have been guilty of this so many times. What I remember most is when my mom first told me that my grandmother had breast cancer. I was 13 at the time and I smiled even though there was nothing funny about it! My emotions get mixed it like that all the time.
 

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