Turning Emotions Up and Down at the Flick of a Switch

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Our minds can often be influenced by our environment in many ways without us even realizing it.

A fascinating new study discovered that we feel our emotions more intensely when we are in rooms with bright lighting rather than dim lighting.

This effect works no matter what emotion you are feeling in that moment.

For example, if you’re happy then turning the lights brighter will amplify those feelings of happiness. But if you’re sad then turning the lights brighter will also amplify those feelings of sadness.

This could also explain why another recent study found depressed people are much more likely to commit suicide on sunny days vs. rainy days.

Because for depressed people, long days of sunlight may actually be increasing their feelings of sadness and depression.

So why is this? The researchers theorized that:

“Bright light usually correlates with heat, and heat is linked to emotional intensity. This psychological experience of heat turns on the hot emotional system, intensifying a person’s emotional reactions to any stimulus. Thus, in bright light, good feels better and bad feels worse.”

The good news is maybe we can use this information to create a little “self help” hack: the next time you are feeling really negative about something, try just dimming the lights.

Maybe you’re feeling really heated after an argument, or sad about a breakup, or frustrated from a recent failure – turn down the lights or go into a less lit room until your feelings dampen or subside.

This will create a relaxing atmosphere to “cool down” your hot emotional system when you are feeling overwhelmed.



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