Why did it take me 6 hours to realize the sensory light was flickering in my office?

I work in a small shared office space downtown and for MONTHS I kept feeling off and getting headaches. Thought it was the coffee or not sleeping enough. Finally last week I was the last one there and the lights were off except for one overhead bulb. It was flickering like crazy, a really fast barely visible flicker. I timed it and it ran for 6 hours straight before I left. Now I have to ask the building manager to change it and I feel dumb. Has anyone else had a flickering light cause a whole day of meltdown without realizing what it was?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_ben23d ago

I actually read a study recently that said fluorescent lights can flicker at 120 times per second, which is too fast for your eyes to see but your brain still picks up on it. That constant low level stress hits your nervous system and messes with you all day. You shouldn't feel dumb at all, it's actually a REALLY common issue in offices and schools. I remember a whole school near me had to replace all their fixtures because kids were getting headaches and nobody could figure out why.

nancy_davis23d ago

Wait, so the study said 120 times per second? That's wild because I feel like if you ask most people they'd say "well if I can't see it then what's the problem" but clearly our brains are processing way more than we give them credit for. How long did it take for your body to start feeling better after they swapped out the fixture in your office? Because I'm curious if it's like an instant relief thing or if it takes a few days for the nervous system to unclench, you know?