How Colours Affect Our Mood

 I had such a wonderful day yesterday.  I felt so productive all morning and then spent quite a bit of time in the warm sun in the afternoon, cleaning away the remnants and debris of winter.  I felt fantastic and it got me to thinking about how it is that we can be impacted by nature in such profoundly uplifting ways. 

Nature is colorful, and every color has special tastes, smells, and sounds. Moving between those colors changes our emotions, and our emotions change our physiology. Our physiology changes our thoughts, and vice versa. Because every person has a special map of the world, in this respect, they have a special “color map” of the world also.

When the energy of color enters our bodies, it stimulates the pituitary and pineal glands. This in turn affects the production of certain hormones, which in turn affect a variety of physiological processes. This explains why color has been found to have such a direct influence on our thoughts, moods, and behavior — an influence that many experts believe is distinctly separate from psychological and cultural factors. Color seems to have an effect even on blind people, who are thought to sense color as a result of energy vibrations created wihtin the body.

Specific colors can also have an effect on specific diseases. Symptoms of acute eruptive diseases, such as smallpox and measles, were relieved when patients were put in a room with red windows. Melancholiacs also recovered after a few hours in such rooms. Pain and depression were found to respond well to therapy using flashing bright lights and colored lights. These treatments have been shown to alter neurochemical production in the brain and this may account for their positive effects. Scientists now believe the brain has specific responses to different frequencies of flashing light and the different frequencies of various colors. They point out sleep problems can often be cured in one day by this method. Mood alteration takes a little longer — about one to two weeks of treatments. 

Let’s talk a bit about colours that often empower us (just three as an introduction):

Red promotes vitality, strength, sexuality, willpower, and alertness. Red is used to counteract anemia, lack of energy, impotence, and low blood pressure.

Green is the color of nature. Green is the most predominant color on the planet. It balances our energies, and it can be used to increase our sensitivity and compassion. It represents purity and harmony. It has a calming effect. It is soothing to the nervous system. It is a great healer. It is thought to build muscles, bones, and other tissue cells.

Blue is associated with willpower and communication. Blue is a calming color, good for curing insomnia. It is often recommended for reducing stress and is good for improving verbal skills.

So my last word of advice – get outside and take advantage of  these colours – it is supposed to go to +20 degrees today and then back to snow by the weekend!  I better go look up the colour white!