This is the Part V of V Share Posts pertaining to categories of "triggers" that can "get the ball rolling" or accelerate your anxiety.  If you're reading this post first, you may want to go back and read Understanding the Vicious Cycle of Panic," first to appreciate the idea that while anxiety may appear to come "out of the blue," actually there is always an underlying cause or "trigger."  In subsequent posts I separated triggers into two categories, internal, or stimuli that start inside of us (such as thoughts, feelings, memories), and external,  which things that start outside of ourselves. In my last post, I discussed Overstimulation (too much going on) and Understimulation (boredom) as potential anxiety triggers.  Today I will describe how fluorescent lights and things experienced by our senses (sights, sounds, smells) can trigger anxiety.

Fluorescent Lights

Most of us have incandescent light bulbs in our homes, which are extremely inefficient. They are inefficient because they actually radiate more heat than light. In contrast, a fluorescent light is four to six more efficient than an ordinary light bulb! There are several reasons for their efficiency, for example, fluorescent light is generated through electrical activity, whereas incandescent light is generated through heat activity. Also, fluorescent light can convert ultraviolet light to visible light--ordinary light bulbs cannot. (for more information about how different lights work, see the How Stuff Works website).

Given the fact that fluorescent lights are far more efficient than traditional light bulbs, why do most of us not have them in our homes? For some it may be a matter of personal preference, but for others we believe that fluorescent lights are actually an anxiety trigger.

When I tell clients that that fluorescent lights can be an anxiety trigger some give me an odd look, but the clients who nod emphatically in agreement are generally teachers. That's because they've already discovered that one quick way to calm down a classroom of antsy students is to turn off the overhead fluorescent lights!

Traditional light bulbs appear "warmer," more like natural sunlight (there's more red light waves and less blue than fluorescent light). This characteristic is probably why most of us prefer incandescent lighting. Some people claim that the cycle of electricity in fluorescent lighting can be seen (as a "flickering" of the 60 cycle electricity), which would certainly be bothersome. More seriously, the flickering of fluorescent lights as been cited as the cause of seizures in people with a specific type of epilepsy known as "reflex epilepsy."

Take notice how you feel when in a room with fluorescent lighting. What do you feel? Some people are fine with it and actually like it. Many others, myself included, just don't like it and prefer incandescent lighting. Still others feel anxiety symptoms in response to the lights. If you feel anxiety symptoms, be sure to rule out other possible triggers in the environment before concluding that fluorescent lights truly bother you.