Saturday, February 27, 2010

Bipolar Disorder and Light Sensitivity

I often adjust my monitor brightness and turn it down when I'm in a hypomanic mood because it feels uncomfortably bright.  Then I turn it back up when I feel normal again.

I used to wear sunglasses all of the time.  It seemed to help with my anxiety, especially while in stores. Fluorescent lights sometimes bother me.  I especially feel weird when going from a night time dark outside environment into a brightly lit store.  It often makes me anxious.

I also wore sun glasses while driving at night to minimize the brightness of the oncoming car headlights. This is probably not advisable. (I don't like driving at night and don't do it now.)

Some links I've found about this:

It seems to me that my hypomanic mood sometimes gets triggered by bright sunlight.  On the other hand, if it has been a dark day, sometimes I feel better after getting some bright light exposure.  Like most things in life, moderation is key.... 

3 comments:

  1. Thanks for this post. I thought I was the only one. Sometimes I've been starting on an upswing and then the clouds cover the sun and my entire body relaxes.

    Appreciate the links, fare well!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I have experienced similar symptoms. I used to drive with yellow sunglasses at night and at there is some evidence that the circadian rhythm light mechanism is triggered by blue light (thus blocked by yellow). I've also tried wearing them when the sun goes down and it seems to help. Anyhow, you are not alone in these symptoms. I almost completely avoid big-box stores for this reason.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I also have issues with this. I am sensitive to lights, bright lights, and get spots in my eyes with faced with florescent lights. Primarily when suffering significant bipolar shifts

    ReplyDelete