Light sensitive?

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Hi,

I`ve only just recently found this site & feel relived as the quirky mannerisms & depression i`ve suffered for a lifetime (38) might be down to having aspergers.
Does any one else feel their depression intensifies at this time of year (spring UK), as the bright sunshine hurts my eyes & makes it impossible for me to make eye contact during the day. If i`m in work i find myself walking around staring at the floor all day so as to avoid conversation, as a result i`ve been sacked from many jobs for acting weird, (not funny). So i`ll withdraw to my room & close the blinds as i find comfort in the dark whenever possible.

Is this one of the many symptoms of aspergers?, i feel so strongly about this that i`ve asked my gp for a referral to see a psycologist for a diagnosis.

As during the autum when it`s naturally cold & dark i feel energized, my pupils dilate & i find maintaining eye contact with people easier, which just reinforces my belief that the weather plays a huge part in how i feel. (Almost like S.A.D. in reverse).

Any helpful comments on this would be appreciated, ty.

you have basically said how i feel.

Light sensitivity is common on the spectrum.
There is indeed a reverse S.A.D., so that's another possibility. It's not as common, but I've read about it.

This is about the time of year when I put on a wide brimmed hat and sunglasses til fall.

When I get emotionally stressed, it helps to be in a dimly lit room. I love the winter when I can wake up and do the morning by lantern light. So much softer.

Hi Rupbert, I read somewhere that people start to feel a bit down this time of the year because the added day light after the darkness of winter makes our brains more active again. I think this in turn makes us very aware of social interactions.

I`ve edited to add that I also don`t like overhead lighting. I removed all those from my bedroom and only have uplighters/dimmer switches. I even switch off the interior light in my car.

Bright lights/sunshine make me uncomfortable - I like it when it's overcast or raining. It bugs me to wear sunglasses though so I tend to stick to poorly lit rooms.. my family jokes that I'm a vampire.

I have light sensitivity too. Get good sunglasses.

I've always preferred darker environments, but I do not have any sensitivity.

I have been light sensitive for as long as I can remember. My parents used to gripe because they'd come home from work and I'd have the curtains all closed and lights on! This past fall there was a solid month in which it did nothing but rain in my area (a rarity) and as everyone around me became increasingly depressed, I reveled in the good weather. I also hate overhead lights. I rely on lamps whenever possible.

You are not alone.

everytime i go outside i sneeze if the sun is bright and that's really funny because i live in florida and well, that's just funny.

" my family jokes that I'm a vampire." - Been there. Besides thde people who complained my office was too dark.Going down the street on sunny days - one ey closed and head down.

Doesn't really affect mood, though. Sleep, yes - hard tio sleep if light shnes in the window.

Extremely sensitive to sunlight, or any other strong light source. My home has blackout shades over the windows, and I basically "estivate" (opposite of hibernate), starting my hiding around this time of year and ending it as Sept. approaches.

Sunlight on my skin is physically painful. And even dark sunglasses still admit too much light.

It's not much of a problem b/c I work from home and don't have/want social interaction.

I prefer darker environments and weather.

I know I'm sensitive regarding taste, smell, touch and sounds - and I've wondered lately about this issue as well, whether my sight is sensitive as well...

I know that I notice sounds other people don't (and react to them differently), and can't bear noise.
I know that I'm sensitive to touch because of how I react when people touch me, and because of my problem touching things.
I know that I'm sensitive to taste because I don't like many things, and can always notice if a formula of a snack is changed, or who made my meal, etc., when others don't.
I know that I'm sensitive to smell because I can tell if a shirt came from my aunt's house because of its smell, and asked other people and they can't tell smells of different houses.

So that lead me to thinking that not everyone is as sensitive as me to light...
Whenever I turn the lights on in my room, my eyes hurt a bit, I have to close them for a while, or blink. Also when I open my windows and the light comes in. But for all those years, I never guessed it's unusual... I can't stare at the sun, but I thought it's normal.

As for the sun feeling itself, I don't like it, only when it's after a long time, for a short while. I hate the feeling of heat, I never leave my house in the summer until it's dark, it's too hot for me. The irony is that I live in Israel, a short walk from the beach (which I love - in the winter!), and my skin is Southern European kind, tans easily and never burns. When I'm out in the sun I get all irritated, but that's also to the touch sensitivity I guess.

Oh, and I also feel much happier and better with colder temperature and dark clouds.

I'm definitely overly-sensitive to light, though it's gotten better the last few years. It's probably been about 5 or 6 years since I've had to go into a completely dark, windowless room to alleviate the headaches and burning sensation in my eyes. I still prefer dimly-lit rooms, though. And I pretty much wear sunglasses during the day, even when it's overcast. If it's really dark, like during a storm, I can get by without it.

I can tolerate strobe lights. The one time I had an issue with strobe lights was at a dance club some people from work had invited me to several years ago. I was quite drunk, there was loud techno music playing, and the strobe lights were going at full strength. I was completely disoriented and had to be led around by another person. I'm just glad that other person didn't have any evil intentions.

Good sunglasses and avoid fluorescent lights.

Even on a moderately cloudy day I can find the sunlight too bright so I wear persimmon lenses which lift all the greens and make it into a bright sunny day without the glare factor.

Avoiding the glare of fluorescent lights is harder.

peace j

I've definately found I'm more agitated on bright days than on dark ones. Luckily in Ireland we don't get much sunshine so I don't have to cope with it too much, but lately there's been a heat wave and the sunlight, combined with the temperature, is driving me bonkers. I simply can't handle light this strong! Even wearing sunglasses I can still feel it searing my retina.