Color Psychology and Mental Health: Here are the 10 colors and how can they affect your mental health.
Mental health is one of those things in life that we neglect a lot.
Most of the time we focus on our physical health and those physical illnesses which are visible to the eye. In such circumstances, we ignore the most essential aspect of mental illness.
The use of colors to heal people, called color therapy, goes back to the ancient Greeks, Egyptians, and Chinese who tried to influence the mood of the people by using colors used to decorate the rooms. Color theory suggests that colors which surround individual play an important role in his physical as well as mental health. Color therapy is based on the idea that the colors that the viewer is exposed to can affect the person’s emotions and the individual’s health (not professional medical advice though).
Whether you know it or not, color can have a profound effect on how your brain sees the world. Do you know if you are looking at sea green or lemon yellow, doesn’t your brain feel different from it? Color comes from the effect of the brain, which affects your emotions and senses. In other words, color can be used as a powerful communication tool.
Color affects the brain because it affects our physiology well, as it affects anxiety, pulse, blood flow, and stimulation. Each color has a specific effect on an individual’s health as market research shows. The color scheme’ effects can be positive as well as negative. In this article, we will be discussing how colors and which type of color – lighter colors or darker colors, have a positive or negative affect. At the end of this post, you will have better understanding of how certain colors influence your mood.
The colors that we will be discussing are
- Black
- Orange
- Color Blue
- Purple
- Green
- Color Red
- Yellow
- Turquoise
- Soft Pink
- Color White
Black
Black is one of the dark colors. It is not wrong to say that black is the darkest color ever, as it can absorb any color. The black color is normally used to illustrate sadness or depict low mood in pictures. Black is an expression of immorality and power simultaneously.
Black color affects mental health of people. Numerous experiments show that black can influence feelings and emotions, moods of individuals and the way they behave. To start with black color is associated with bad and negative things: black means death and mourning in some cultures; black absorbs all light and doesn’t let outside world to enter inside one’s mind.
This means black can have positive as well as a negative effect on your health. If black is used lightly in your surrounding or environment, it helps you in focusing on your goals and reminds you about your powers and authorities.
If you surround yourself 24/7 with black color, then it may have an adverse effect on your health. This may induce a low mood in your daily activities. For example, people wear black at a funeral, as it depicts sadness.
Orange
Known to be one of the brightest color, it is an energetic approach in its color. It lies between dark colors and light colors. Depending on how you view it, it is a combination of red and yellowish texture.
Studies have shown it has a soothing effect on health. It helps in elevating the mood. It is a great way to enhance your confidence. It helps in increasing your energy levels. It motivates you in all your life decisions.
It is also very beneficial for a healthy liver. It also has an antidepressant effect. This confidence and happiness increase is also good for your creativity.
Color psychology is a term used to describe the mental and emotional effects of specific colors. The human brain has certain wavelengths that it can see, and each color’s wavelength stimulates different emotions or mental reactions. Colors such as orange have been shown to be related to mental health.
Orange is associated with both warmth and vibrancy. It helps create a positive mental attitude. Orange can also encourage mental stability and mental endurance.
People who are feeling down or depressed may benefit from the use of orange color in their environment. The study in 1989 by Pratt found that in mental institutions, orange was used to help patients in therapy time where they felt depression.
Blue
Blue, is the natural color, as usually found in the daytime sky, and oceans, sea, or clear lakes. This color is described as peaceful and comfortable by nature. It is the color most preferred by men and it is considered a non-threatening color.
It brings a calm and comfortable feeling to the mind. It is mostly described as peaceful, calm, safe, and orderly. It is a symbol of stability and reliability. These are the positive effects of blue.
There are a few negative effects of blue, particularly dark blue. Blue can induce sad feelings. From my own experience, color blue is also used to describe depression. For example, Monday Blues is a common phrase used to depict sadness due to the beginning of the Monday routine or work.
Blue has mental health benefits when it comes to mental disorders such as increased mental focus, stress reduction, improved memory recall and alertness. It can be used in rooms that need mental calming, like tea rooms or an office space where mental performance is required.
Purple
Purple is a shade that is related to mystery and magic. It is a symbol of royalty and wealth. It represents knowledge and spirituality. Purple gives you the feeling of great power and enhances peace of mind and spirituality. Purple color helps you relax, giving you a chance to open your creative piece. Sometimes this color is considered exotic too. Maybe because it does not occur in nature frequently.
Purple color has many shades. Each has a different meaning. Therefore, tender pleasures go for feminine energy, romantic or nostalgic. The bright shade has always been associated with prosperity and royalty. History depicts the most effective royalty in purple clothing. This color has positive effects on your mental health.
According to one study found that purple color spectrum helps with mental clarity. It helps you keep your mental health stable because it provides positive energy. This color can give you mental peace and relaxes your mind so that you can focus on your mental illness more clearly.
Green
Cool colors, such as blue and green, have a calming effect on the mind. They are often used in decorating and painting to create an atmosphere of relaxation and peace. In fact, studies have shown that exposure to
cool colors can improve mental health by reducing stress levels and creating a sense of tranquility.
Being closest to nature, green is great at re-establishing balance, security, security, and unity. The various shades of green color reduce anxiety levels and has a positive effect on heart health.
Spending time on the green orchard is a great way to maximize the effect this color has on you physically and mentally. It is widely recognized as the color of nutrition, growth, and health. It is the color used to represent the Renaissance. It has great benefits for your mental health.
The green colors give you a sense of restoration and abruptness. That is why spending time in nature is an effective way to balance your mind and mood.
Different shades of green in the natural environment express feelings of well-being and peace. Green is considered an optimistic color. It induces relaxation in some and excitement in others.
Red
Red is often seen as one o the warm colors, and it can have a number of effects on your mind. For starters, for example, red rooms can create a sense of excitement or energy, making you feel more alert or awake i.e. good for a study room. Additionally, red can be associated with passion or love, which can evoke strong emotions in you. Finally, red may also make you feel more confident and assertive, which can be helpful when you need to be assertive or energetic in your work or personal life.
Furthermore, red is associated with passion. Red helps strengthen, energize, and add passion to everything you do, which will make it great to start your love life. On a physical level, red is great for dealing with freezing or seasonal colds.
It produces strong emotions. Red is associated with love, warmth, and happiness. It has two extremes usually. It either stimulates intense feelings such as aggression or it can create feelings of excitement or intensity.
Some people report that red is fun and playful, while others think it is very bold, exciting, and sexy. Consider your own feelings towards red and think about some of the effects of experiences that may contribute to your reaction to this color.
Yellow
Yellow is a bright color that is often cheerful and warm. It is considered a happy color. It is advisable to surround yourself with yellow color. It will give you inner strength, increase your positivity, and increase your pleasure level.
It has a positive effect on your nervous and digestive systems. It boosts metabolism. It can also affect your health.
However, it can be very harmful to the eyes because it reflects high levels of light. Using yellow on paper or computer monitors can cause vision or vision loss in extreme cases. Yellow can create feelings of frustration and anger.
Turquoise
Turquoise is the color of truth, communication, and serenity. You can use this color to improve your hearing and other communication skills. Surprisingly, color turquoise is great for people with eczema or acne, or for those with fatigue or high tension.
Colour Psychology indicates that turquoise heals and regulates our emotions. As a result, we gain emotional stability. However, excessive use of this color can cause mental imbalance.
Turquoise helps us to think clearly, making it the perfect color for emergencies. It not only encourages the right decision-making but also structures it. When we see the color turquoise, it makes us more organized.
This color provides you a clear idea and increased concentration. It calms and recharges your energy. It helps to hide your feelings.
Soft Pink
Soft pink or pastel colors have a positive effect on health. It is a light color and has satisfying effects. It helps an individual to get relax. It has positive effects on memory too. It helps in getting a peaceful sleep too.
The individual having an environment with lots of pink in it is relaxed, happy people and have a good memory too. Considering a darker shade of pink, which is magenta, is great for headaches and nausea. Passive pink is considered to induce a low mood, in some cases, negative effects on physical as well as mental health
White
White is most closely associated with innocence, purity, and perfection. This purity helps physically – by cleansing the body – or mentally – by giving the mind some clarity. White energies can help you balance your decisions and stay neutral.
It helps to fight the mind and get out of the dark into pure life. This color is the brightest color in the human eye. White goes well with products that define the best in safety and hygiene, purity, order, and simplicity. White is bright and can create a sense of space or add highlights.
Some of the positive connotations that white can give are cleanliness, freshness, and simplicity. White often looks like a blank slate, symbolizing a new beginning or a new beginning. There is a negative effect of this color.
White is considered cold and lonely. For example, a large, white, empty room can be boring, quiet, and sharp. It also depicts cold, boring, and unhappiness. The interesting thing about this color is that it has more commercially available shades than other colors.
Conclusion
Colors make a huge impact and leave trials in the sub-conscious mind. How different colors affect one’s mind is simply mind-blowing. Therefore, next time you try painting or consider repainting your walls, choose wisely which colors do you want to positively affect you.
It’s interesting to think about how something as seemingly simple as the color of a wall can have such a profound impact on our mood and mental state. However, this is just one example of how we can use colors to treat anxiety and other mental health issues. By understanding which colors have positive effects on our minds, we can make small changes in our environment that can lead to big improvements in our overall well-being.
Have a look at the above image. Tell us in the comments below which color is more relaxing for you. Usually, mental health is affected by color due to past experience of the individual perceiving these colors.
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I’ve always liked black and orange but had no idea what they mean and how they affect our mental health, very interesting.
Ok…I had to share this. People should know how color can effect your mood
I have learned a lot from this article. Now I know the meaning of these colors and how they are connected to our lives especially to our mental health
I hadn’t thought about colors in this way before!