Color therapy
Color therapy (chromotherapy) —
is a method of alternative medicine based on the influence of color and light on the psyche and physical condition of a person. Each shade has its own psychophysical characteristics and can affect mood, emotions, thought processes and even the functioning of the body.
Despite the status of a pseudoscientific method, color therapy is actively used in psychology, psychotherapy, reflexology, ophthalmology, pedagogy, gerontology and even in Feng shui practices. In some countries, there is a specialty called «color therapist».
History of color therapy
In ancient Egypt
patients were treated in «color temples», where sunlight passed through precious stones
In China and India
colors were used in medicine and spiritual practices (in particular, in Ayurveda)
In the Middle Ages
color was considered a reflection of the «life juices» and the balance of the body
In Ukraine
interest in color therapy developed in the 20th century in the context of psychology, pedagogy, and health practices
Application of color therapy
Psychology
Psychotherapy
Medicine
Ophthalmology
Gerontology
Color is used to diagnose and correct emotional states. The famous Max Luscher test shows that the choice of colors reflects inner experiences, the level of anxiety, stress and psychological balance.
Colored light and visualizations are used to treat depression, anxiety disorders, and insomnia. In art therapy, colors help to express unconscious experiences, to reduce emotional tension.Ukrainian researcher V.M. El’kin studied the role of color in creative practices as a means of self-expression and internal healing.
Indian doctor Dinshah Pestanji Ghadiali at the beginning of the 20th century created the “Spectro-Chrome” system, where color filters were used to treat diseases.
Today, colored light is used in light therapy to combat seasonal depression, regulate biorhythms and prevent certain diseases.
Colored lenses, glasses, and light devices are used to train vision, reduce fatigue, and treat amblyopia in children. Blue light is used in phototherapy for newborns with jaundice.
A properly selected color scheme helps the elderly: warm colors stimulate vital activity, cold colors reduce anxiety and provide peace. Studies show that a colorful environment has a positive effect on cognitive functions and the emotional state of the elderly.
Famous color researchers
Isaac Newton
discovered the spectral nature of light (1672)
Johann Wolfgang Goethe
author of the “Theory of Color” (1810), described the psychological impact of colors
Carl Jung
used colors in projective techniques as a key to the unconscious
Rudolf Steiner
studied the spiritual meaning of color
Max Luscher (Switzerland)
author of the color preference test
D.P. Ghadiali (India)
developer of the “Spectro-Chrome” system
N. Sobchik (Ukraine)
psychologist who studied color as a diagnostic tool
I.I. Tsyganok (Ukraine)
studied the role of color in the formation of personality
V.M. El’kin (Ukraine)
art therapist, studied the therapeutic possibilities of color
Interesting to know about colors
- In Swiss hospitals, walls were painted green to reduce stress in patients.
- In US prisons, Baker-Miller pink was tested, which reduced aggression.
- In Japan blue lamps, were installed at some subway stations to reduce the number of suicides.
- Psychology of color in Ukrainian culture: red in embroidery as a talisman, black as protection, green — as a symbol of youth, gold — as a symbol of fertility.
White
Who chooses it
People who seek clarity, simplicity, a new start, with a need for «cleansing» and structure.
Application
- Psychotherapy: a neutral «polar» color for calming, focusing.
- Medicine: white/bright light in light therapy for seasonal affective disorder (regulation of biorhythms).
- Interiors: visually expands the space, emphasizes order.
Caution
Excess can give a feeling of coldness, isolation, sterility.
Blue
Who chooses it
Supporters of peace, trust, “clean air”, with a need for security.
Application
- Psychotherapy:anxiety reduction, sleep regulation, breathing practices.
- Medicine: relaxation effects for tension/headaches.
- Interiors: bathrooms, workplaces with high cognitive load – a sense of space.
Caution
Excess – emotional “cooling”, detachment.
Purple
Who chooses it
Intuitive, introspective, creative; attraction to the senses and self-knowledge.
Application
- Psychotherapy: meditative practices, work with imagination, reduction of anxiety-depressive states.
- Medicine: relaxation context, sleep hygiene.
- Interiors: accents for “depth” in bedrooms/offices.
Caution
Excess – a feeling of isolation, «etached from the earth».
Pink
Who chooses it
Empathetic, peaceful people, with a need for warmth, support, and softness.
Application
- Psychotherapy: reducing aggression, emotional tension; safe background for vulnerable clients.
- Medicine/art therapy: soft pink palettes as an anxiolytic factor, supporting sleep hygiene.
- Interiors: warm comfort in bedrooms / rest areas.
Caution
Excess – a shade of infantility, overload of “sweetness”, rapid emotional fatigue.
Green
Who chooses it
Those who seek balance, stability, and connection with nature.
Application
- Psychotherapy: reducing stress, supporting recovery after emotional burnout.
- Medicine: calming effect, sometimes – normalizing pressure; useful background for visual loads.
- Interiors: hospitals, classrooms, bedrooms – “breathing” peace.
Caution.
Excess – passivity, indifference.
Red
Who chooses it
Decisive, passionate, leadership people, with a need to act, to assert oneself.
Application
- Psychotherapy: anti-apathy stimulus, increases the will to act.
- Medicine: associated with stimulation of blood circulation, increased tone.
- Interiors: better as an accent (restaurants, activity areas) than as a dominant background.
Caution
With hypertension, tachycardia, high anxiety and stress – with caution, should be used sparingly.
Dark blue
Who chooses it
Balanced, structural people, with a high need for peace and depth.
Application
- Psychotherapy: anti-anxiety practices, meditation, focus on breathing.
- Medicine: синє світло — blue light — phototherapy of newborns; in the environment — a «cooling» anti-inflammatory mood.
- Interiors: bedrooms, lounges, spaces of trust (clinics, meeting rooms).
Caution
Excess – risk of sadness, emotional «cooling».
Gold
Who chooses it
Confident, generous people, with a need for self-esteem, inner light and achievements.
Application
- Psychotherapy: support for self-worth, anti-rumination «sunny» images.
- Medicine: association with vitality (contextual, not clinical meaning).
- Interiors: as a detail – warm luxury, festivity.
Caution
Excess – risk of narcissism, «overload» with shine.
Yellow
Who chooses it
Optimists, sociable people, with a need for recognition and mental activity.
Application
- Psychotherapy: mood lifting, stimulation of thinking, motivation.
- Medicine: sometimes as support for asthenia, solar “recharge”; associated with stimulation of digestion.
- Interiors: kitchens, work areas, study spaces – “solar” focus.
Caution
Excess – irritability, nervous exhaustion.
Orange
Who chooses it
Creative, cheerful, contact people, with a need for joy and warm social contact.
Application
- Psychotherapy: anti-apathy color, increases vitality.
- Medicine: associative – appetite, immune support (as contextual effects of the environment).
- Interiors: living rooms, children’s rooms – warm, “social” spaces.
Caution
Excess – hyperactivity, impatience, impulsiveness.
Brown
Who chooses it
Practical, reliable people, with a need for support and «grounding».
Applications
- Psychotherapy: stabilization, working with anxiety, returning to physicality.
- Medicine: a calming background environment.
- Interiors: wood, textures – warmth, homeliness, intimacy.
Caution
Excess – routine, stagnation, «heaviness» of space.
Gray/silver
Who chooses it
Those who seek neutrality, stability; silver – intuitive-lunar, «protective».
Application
- Psychotherapy: gray .— «pausing» of emotions, detox from stimuli; silver .— an image of emotional protection.
- Medicine: neutral stabilizing background in light therapy spaces.
- Interiors: gray – universal base color; silver – elegant accents.
Caution
Excess gray – apathy; excess silver – cold detachment.