Regarding light-sensitivity...

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I have that pretty severe. I always wear sunglasses unless it's late in the evening or very dark sky.

I once took them off on a driving lesson because I thought I ought to. I had to put them back after a few minutes because my eyes were streaming like mad and seizing shut.

I swear, the next person who taunts me about it will get to see what their intestines look like.

On a bright, sunny day I'll wear a hat and sunglasses to prevent squinting, eye irritation, and headaches. Certain fluorescent lights bother me as well, especially if they are just turning on or if they are old and flickering.

Sunglasses and hat. necessity. sunglasses in some interior spaces also.

standard fare for some of us.
But it is easy to manage with the above.

People can hassle me about wearing sunglasses inside. I have learned to tell them to "frig off."

It’s me too!

Do all Aspies have a disliking to light? Because I don't seem to, and I never have. If it's a dull day or getting dark in the evening, I can't do anything until I've switched on a bright light. Then I feel better. I start feeling angry if I'm sitting in a half-dark room. I've even took a dislike to the energy-saving light bulbs, because they're too dim. So my dad has gone out and brought me a set of really bright light-bulbs - now I feel happier.

And I love flourescent lights.

And the other day at work, one of the lights went dead and the bulb couldn't be replaced until the next day, so half of the store room stayed dark, whilst the other side had it's light. I had to work in the light side until the other light was fixed.

And don't think I've got an obsession with lights - because I haven't! I just prefer light to dullness and darkness.
By the way, I'm not afraid of the dark. But I don't like darkness - it seems to hurt my eyes more than light. My pupils feel really big in darkness and it's uncomfortable. Good job I live in somewhere where you sleep at night time and awake in daylight!

I prefer to have the lights off during the day, though I hate sunshades. It's why I wear my hat.

I don't like bright lights, they trigger headaches and/or migraines if I'm in or near the light for too long. Hats and sunglasses do help, as well as buying dimmer light bulbs.

I was diagnosed with photophobia when I was a kid and it's still with me. My pupils feel like they're going to squeeze shut from light sometimes. I wear sunglasses outside and downloaded software for my computer that lets me dim the monitor way down.

Interestingly, on the wikipedia page for photophobia, ASD is listed as being a cause.

yeah. i dont really do much. just try not to stand facing the sun, even when its cloudy. and probably squint alot. i feel abit self conscious wearing sunglasses unless its super hot/summery. oh, i have my phone and computer screen brightness setting turned down quite low too usually. its mostly sunlight that bothers me though, artificial light isnt so bad

Last edited by OneStepBeyond on 28 Aug 2010, 9:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Bright lights bother me greatly---they always have. I think many of us with autism have issues with lights (and other sensory things like sounds). Even looking at my baby pictures one can tell that light bothered me.

One thing that I have done that helps a bit is that I have my eye doctor make my lenses special---a special coating that causes light to scatter and not be so intense for me. Unfortunately, insurance doesn't really help on this, so it is expensive. I think it is some kind of polarized thing.

Light bothers me a lot. Even on overcast days my right eye is always closed. Florescent lights are extremely nauseating as are CRT monitors.
I where sunglasses when I'm outside, all the time.

Hi Coldkick---since I know what you are talking about, you might consider getting the coating on your sunglasses that I get on my glasses that I mentioned in the post before yours. It does help a little---and a little can be comforting.

Why are we autistics this way??? I was reading yesterday about our eyes. Some of us with autism have eyes that stay dilated bigger---therefore allowing more light to enter.

I have been seriously considering putting Christmas lights up all over the house so I don't have to turn on the regular lights. But then I might get stuck staring at them and never leave the house...

Wow, this brings back a childhood memory. As a child I loved to go to my bedroom and turn the lights off at Christmas time because Dad always put those big colored lights on the house. I loved to see them out my windows through the thin curtains in my room. That seemed magical.

I used to sleep under the Christmas tree until my parents took it down after New Year's. It was magical!

Yeah i am light sensitive. I have a terrible time with the seasons. I am in the UK so our seasons are extreme, especially with regard to the light levels. Winter has me so sluggish I could hibernate easily. Then summer has me too wired and I don't sleep well at all. I hate sunglasses. The best times are September and March when we have equal day and night.

Also colour light, like traffic lights etc stand out so much and can seem a bit harsh. I also hate flashing adverts.