Light sensitivity, coloured lenses, advice

Hi all,

I struggle with light sensitivity- bright white light (both natural and artificial) is the worst which can cause bad headaches, fatigue and difficulty concentrating.

I'm always dimming lights on devices, turning lights off, closing curtains (to my family's annoyance) or wearing sunglasses which isn't always practical.

Anyone else experience this or have any suggestions that might help? Do coloured lenses help?

Many thanks! 

Parents
  • By any chance are you colourblind? This can lend itself to problems with brilliance. 
    I’m personally quite irritated at how bright lights are becoming at night. It’s dangerous, reshaping the ecology and causing problems even with people who don’t notice. Lightaware.org may have ideas as well. 

  • I'm not colourblind. If anything it's quite the opposite ha! I experience colours very intensely which has pros and cons. Thank you for your response and for highlighting the word 'brilliance' to me (some times it's hard to find the right word). I am also irritated by how bright lights are especially car lights and how this can impact our circadian rhythm. Thanks for the website tip, I've not heard of that site. :)

  • By any chance are you a tetrachrome? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetrachromacy It could be good to find out what particular areas on the spectrum are difficult. This topic is quite deep, by the way! Colourblind individuals can often see better in the dark as they rely on their Rods more than their cones and the Rods borrow from near- to infra-red (NIR), essentially the idea is they possess a better width but are then missing the ability to see certain colours toward the middle of the spectrum. Infrared is what helps us see with contrast and Ultravioilet with brilliance - and having difficulty finding the word can be hard for all of us! especially when stressed, if even a little. 

    All humans experience flash blindness in the dark with headlamps and bike lights: the levels and laser focused beams of LEDs are similar but even worse than what would've been used for police spotlights or even to harm prisoners. They're unnecessary on cars as halogens can be made to use 75% less rare earth materials, have a better spectrum of light and don't take any more energy than needed as cars recycle energy. I'm always campaigning against them, when they hit your eyes at night, the rods (which the retina uses in the evening take much longer to adjust than the cones (used during daylight). However, don't be surprised if it's hard to get help from a medical professional. Even with the research that does exist, it's too little, LEDs are too new and the more any of us look into the laws and corporations behind Planned Obsolescence, the more suspicious they become. They're harmful to humans in many ways and definitely not sustainable!

Reply
  • By any chance are you a tetrachrome? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetrachromacy It could be good to find out what particular areas on the spectrum are difficult. This topic is quite deep, by the way! Colourblind individuals can often see better in the dark as they rely on their Rods more than their cones and the Rods borrow from near- to infra-red (NIR), essentially the idea is they possess a better width but are then missing the ability to see certain colours toward the middle of the spectrum. Infrared is what helps us see with contrast and Ultravioilet with brilliance - and having difficulty finding the word can be hard for all of us! especially when stressed, if even a little. 

    All humans experience flash blindness in the dark with headlamps and bike lights: the levels and laser focused beams of LEDs are similar but even worse than what would've been used for police spotlights or even to harm prisoners. They're unnecessary on cars as halogens can be made to use 75% less rare earth materials, have a better spectrum of light and don't take any more energy than needed as cars recycle energy. I'm always campaigning against them, when they hit your eyes at night, the rods (which the retina uses in the evening take much longer to adjust than the cones (used during daylight). However, don't be surprised if it's hard to get help from a medical professional. Even with the research that does exist, it's too little, LEDs are too new and the more any of us look into the laws and corporations behind Planned Obsolescence, the more suspicious they become. They're harmful to humans in many ways and definitely not sustainable!

Children