Heliophobia?

[Elselia]

I'm asking such random questions... I'm really curious though.

Summer is a beautiful word.  Sun is a positive word.  "Sunny day" is a happy phrase.  I'm okay with seeing a picture of the sun, talking about the sun, and if the weather forecast says it's going to be a sunny day I'm glad, not upset.  I'm even okay with being in the sun as long as it's not touching me and everything else isn't too bright.

However, I can't stand the feel of the sun on my skin.  It stresses me out and I'll start getting extremely grumpy to the point of meltdown (pun not intended).  I'm known to wear jackets in summer if I'm outside, even if it's sweltering.

Is that an AS/OCD thing or just a phobia I've conditioned myself into?  Does anyone else get this?

[TheException]

I wouldn't say I have a phobia of the sun or sunlight as I have been known to enjoy it's warmth, but my eyes detest it's brightness, to the point that it hurts sometimes to go outside.

The sunlight sometimes reflects off of our kitchen sink, so when you're entering the kitchen you get a face full of sun, that really hurts my eyes as I'm not expecting it (even though I should be )...

[Aaryk Noctivagus]

However, I can't stand the feel of the sun on my skin.  It stresses me out and I'll start getting extremely grumpy to the point of meltdown (pun not intended).

It means you're a vampire (JOKE)

I dislike overly bright days, but then I have sensitive eyes. On bright (and more often than not on overcast days) I wear dark sunglasses when I'm out. Indeed, its only if its actually raining that I don't wear sunglasses when out.

I wish I lived on Mars where it is always twilight.

I get a bit cross at the sun. In the UK, things get really clammy in the Summer because we are surrounded by the sea and so there is a lot of humidity... which I find uncomfortable (it is very different in land-locked places like Switzerland (where my wife comes from). And then there is the brightness. So I do get grumpy at the sun if there is no shade I can haunt.

[Elselia]

Ah, I can't stand the brightness either, TheException.  I find the sky is too bright to look at, even on an overcast day.  I usually have to cut off part of my field of vision (eg looking at the ground, squinting, form a "tunnel" to look through with both hands, flip down the car visor, etc).  We have a large stretch of pale-coloured concrete outside our front door, and if it's a sunny day it'll be really bright, and hurts my eyes when I open the door!  All those little things that never seemed to mean anything, heh.

Aaryk - hehe.  I should wear sunglasses... just that I wear prescription glasses normally, and it's too much effort to go and find prescription sunnies, or sunglasses that will fit over my glasses.

For the skin thing, it's a lot of bother when I'm driving in the mid-morning or mid-afternoon when there's some form of sunstrike.  I'm trying to hide my arms or hands from the sun, and thus can't leave them on the steering wheel.  That means I end up not touching the steering wheel and just "pecking" it to re-align the car with the road when it gets too off-course, or just using one hand to drive (the one that doesn't have to be in the sun).  I could of course just grin and bear it, but driving is stressful for me anyways, and driving+sun on skin has regularly led to meltdowns when I get to wherever I'm driving to.  Not a great look for whoever I have to meet with!

[Aspergers Girl]

hmm I can't say i've ever had a problem with the sun unless it makes me sweat a lot. It's intensity is too much for me, it makes me sneeze a lot. I enjoy sitting in the warm but I can kinda imagine the radiation entering your body as you feel the warmth.

[Aaryk Noctivagus]

I don't have the sunlight touching skin thing... its mostly to do with sensory stimulation at a milder level with me.

[TheException]

I wear Irlen Lenses on my glasses, they help with the sun alot.

[renaeden]

The sunlight in Australia is very strong and I am pale so it often hurts my skin to be out in the sun even for just a few minutes. I can get burnt in the middle of July.

[Aaryk Noctivagus]

I get burned easilly also... very fair skinned. I'm under strict instructions from my Rheumatologist not to get burned... this is because of my medication... the skin would have trouble repairing.

[carbonhalo]

Transitions between bright sunlight and a poorly lit room can give me migraines.

I used to peel readily when burnt...now I get a rash first...solar dermatitis.
Takes just as long as a burn to heal, but doesn't hurt in the shower.

Looking out the window, midsummer, on drought ridden country, I often fear the radiation .

[Elselia]

Renaeden, that's pretty extreme! unless I'm thinking of a far rainier July over here in Kiwiland than Aus, heh.  Carbonhalo - you poor thing... I guess I'm lucky not getting migraines in the sun.  Aww all you poor people who get burnt...

It's bizarre.  The one time I remember being in the sun, I didn't burn.  At all.  Went straight to a "nice" dark honey tan.  (I'm ethnically asian, that makes sense.)  My aversion to sun is definitely not because I get burnt easily.  It's pretty weird...

[finsterau]

I like darkness even more. But I´m not really heliophob.  I prefer  sunglasses to carry and to stay more out of the sun.

[P7PSP]

I like the Sun, Spring and Autumn are my favorite seasons. Having it get dark too early, like right now, sucks.

[Rocket]

Yeah, I got a friend like that (actually, my ex Emily's best friend). She hates going out except when's it cloudy and says the sun hurts her skin.