One of my family’s Christmas traditions is to visit holiday light displays at various locations in our area, including light displays in local neighborhoods and larger displays at parks or other nearby locations. Even though I developed a sensitivity to bright and flashing lights when I was a teenager, I’ve continued to participate in the tradition of visiting holiday lights with photosensitivity by coming up with strategies for visiting holiday lights with light sensitivity (inclusive of both photophobia and photosensitivity). Here is how I handle bright and flashing lights during the holidays and participate in holiday traditions in a way that is safe for me and my brain condition.
What is photosensitivity (light sensitivity)?
Photophobia and photosensitivity are terms used to describe adverse reactions or an intolerance to bright lights, strobe lights, or flashing lights, which can include eye pain, headaches, nausea, seizures, dizziness, discomfort, or other symptoms. Some people may have photophobia or photosensitivity but will involuntarily fixate on flashing lights or bright lights, making it difficult or impossible for them to look away.
Examples of medical conditions that can be affected by photosensitivity or experience negative effects from flashing lights include:
- Autism/ADHD/Sensory Processing Disorder
- Chiari malformations
- Cortical Visual Impairment/Cerebral Visual Impairment (CVI)
- Epilepsy
- Flicker Vertigo
- Migraines
- Motion sickness
- Neurological conditions
- Non-epileptic seizures
- PTSD
- Vestibular disorders
- Visual impairments, inclusive of low vision and blindness
- Visual Processing Disorder
Not everyone who has these diagnoses will experience photosensitivity, but it is a known trigger for some people with these conditions. In my case, I experience photophobia and photosensitivity connected to visual impairment (low vision) and Chiari malformation, and my reactions vary from eye pain from bright lights to feeling disoriented or having a migraine triggered by strobe or flashing lights. Since my vision loss is influenced by both an eye condition and a brain condition, bright or flashing lights can also distort my vision and make it challenging to see anything in my environment other than the lights.
RELATED LINKS
- Avoiding Flashing Lights On Social Media
- How I Talk To Professors About Photosensitivity
- Going To Prom With Chiari Malformation
Visit light displays during the day or in the early evening
During the day or early evening when there is still a lot of ambient/surrounding light, lights may be turned off or appear less bright or intense compared to viewing them in the dark. Visitors can still see the light structures and other holiday decorations, and it is less likely that flashing light effects will be turned on (though the extra light can help to minimize effects from accidental exposure). This is what my family does when we visit the light displays at a local amusement park, because at night people often wear clothing with rapidly flashing or strobe lights or carry their own flashing lights.
When viewing light displays from a car, one strategy to help with making lights appear less intense is to turn the lights on inside of the car, which can provide an effect similar to watching TV in a well-lit room.
Related links
Have another person check out the light display first
When my friends were going to a holiday light display outside of Washington DC, one of my friends went to check out the display in advance to see if the lights would be disorienting for me and another friend who is sensitive to flashing lights. For annual light displays, some places will put a video tour of their holiday lights display online so that a trusted friend or family member can look at the lights and determine if they will be an issue.
A church near my college had a video tour of their holiday light trail online, and indicated the flashing speed of relevant displays, such as “the red lights on the candy cane are set to flash two times per second.” This information was really helpful for visiting holiday lights with photosensitivity.
How to check flashing lights for photosensitivity
According to the Epilepsy Foundation, holiday lights that flash between 16 and 25 times per second are considered the most dangerous for people living with photosensitive epilepsy, though these high flash rates can also be disorienting for people who have vestibular disorders or other medical conditions. Since I’ve lived with light sensitivity for several years, I have learned what type of lights are okay and which ones I need to avoid, and will ask people to describe what lights look like before I look at them or decide to visit a light display.
Examples of characteristics of flashing lights include:
- Flicker rate/speed: How fast are the lights flickering or changing? I tell people that lights that are flashing at the same rate as a car blinker are okay, but lights that are changing more than 2-3 times a second are personally disorienting to me.
- Color and brightness of the lights: A bright white light will be more disorienting than a dark green light. Red lights are a common seizure trigger.
- Size of the lights: A smaller flashing light may be less disorienting than a row of flashing lights or a pattern of flashing lights, especially if they are flashing out of sync
- Amount of flashing lights present: If the entire event consists of strobe or flashing lights, then it’s better that I find a different activity
It’s worth noting that the light flash rate can accidentally change due to damage or malfunctioning lights. Choosing non-flashing or slow flashing lights is the best option for choosing safe lighting displays for people with light sensitivity.
Related links
Note where flashing lights are located
A lot of holiday lights displays combine flashing lights and still lights into their various decorative areas. At a holiday light display near my college, I made a note of landmarks where the flashing lights would begin and end- for example, I knew to close my eyes starting at the polar bear display, and a friend would tell me to open my eyes once we got to the penguin display. We got this information by calling the organization that created the lights display and asked them which of their displays had flashing lights that flickered faster than a car blinker, and they provided us a list of what items flashed and where they were located on the trail.
I don’t have epilepsy, but some people with photosensitive epilepsy may find that closing eyes completely can still trigger averse effects. Instead, it is recommended that individuals cover one eye with the palm of their hand and look away from the lights to reduce exposure.
Search for still light events
Some churches, organizations, and neighborhoods will have still light events where they turn off strobe, flickering, and flashing light displays and set all of the lights to still colors or very slow moving flashes so that they are safe for people with photosensitivity. These may be marketed as sensory-friendly events, or set up through neighborhood homeowner’s associations or other organizations. This is a great way to be inclusive of people who are sensitive to flashing lights and their families!
Wearing sunglasses to help with light sensitivity
A common recommendation for minimizing the intensity of bright or flashing lights is to wear sunglasses or tinted glasses to help with softening the appearance of light. I personally do not find this very helpful for strobe or flashing lights, but it can be helpful for minimizing the intensity of bright lights in otherwise dark environments.
More resources on visiting holiday lights with light sensitivity
- One of the students I worked with that has cortical visual impairment (CVI) loves holiday lights because they can see the shape of different houses and lots of backlit decorations. Their family would check out light displays on a different street every day to avoid over-excitement from viewing several light displays in one day.
- Need ideas for decorating a Christmas tree for someone with low vision? Read Decorating A Christmas Tree With Low Vision
- Want more resources for describing holiday displays? Read How To Describe A Christmas Tree For Visual Impairment
Published December 4, 2017. Updated December 2024