Color as a Therapeutic Tool

Color is more than just a visual experience—it is an energetic language that speaks directly to the brain and body. From ancient healing systems to modern design psychology, color has long been recognized as a powerful force in shaping our emotions, cognition, and even physiological states. In this post, we explore how you can use color intentionally to boost both mood and productivity—whether at home, at work, or in a healing space.

1. The Science Behind Color Perception

Neuroscience Insight: How the Brain Responds to Color

The visual cortex processes color in milliseconds, influencing the limbic system (emotion) and prefrontal cortex (decision-making).
Warm colors (red, orange, yellow) tend to stimulate and activate; cool colors (blue, green, violet) tend to calm and restore.
Color can affect neurotransmitter balance—e.g., blue light boosts alertness via increased cortisol and reduced melatonin.

Takeaway: Color is not just aesthetic—it’s neurochemical.

2. Principles of Chromotherapy: Ancient Wisdom Meets Modern Practice

Red: Stimulating and energizing; associated with circulation and vitality.
Orange: Uplifting and social; linked to creativity and mood.
Yellow: Bright and intellectual; stimulates focus and optimism.
Green: Balancing and neutral; used to soothe the nervous system.
Blue: Cooling and calming; supports communication and sleep.
Indigo/Violet: Meditative and spiritual; often used for intuition and introspection.

Use Cases:

Green walls in therapy rooms for emotional equilibrium.
Soft blue in bedrooms or workspaces to support calm focus.
Orange or yellow in communal or creative zones for warmth and engagement.

3. Lighting Matters: Circadian Rhythms and Environmental Influence

Natural light supports circadian alignment and mood regulation.
Artificial lighting with cool undertones can stimulate alertness in work settings but may disrupt sleep cycles after dark.
Warm lighting in the evening (amber, soft pink) promotes melatonin production and parasympathetic activity.

Pro Tip: Use dimmable, full-spectrum light sources or color-tunable bulbs to adapt your space from morning focus to evening wind-down.

4. Designing with Intention: Color Zoning for Mood and Function

Use color to assign emotional or energetic "roles" to different areas of your environment:

Space Color Vibe Intentional Effect

Meditation Corner Indigo + Candlelight Deep rest, introspection, healing

Home Office Sage green + Natural Wood Calm, focus, minimal distraction

Kitchen/Dining Area Warm yellow + Terra cotta Digestive stimulation, joy

Studio/Workspace Sky blue or turquoise + sunlight Clarity, inspiration, ease

5. Daily Rituals with Color Awareness

Start your day with exposure to blue or bright white light to enhance alertness.
Work with warm-toned background screens to reduce eye strain and stress.
Wind down at night in soft pink or amber-toned spaces with indirect lighting.
Incorporate colored scarves, yoga mats, or essential oil bottles into your space for intentional vibrational impact.

Conclusion: Color Is a Nervous System Resource

Remember, there are no “bad colors” just as much as there are no individual colors that are “best.” When leveraging color to enhance mood, productivity, or vitality, it is important to keep in mind what affinities you are seeking to create and remember the possible contraindications or adverse effects of integrating too much of any one color.

Whether you’re designing a home studio, office, or healing sanctuary, mindful use of color and light can recalibrate the nervous system, support productivity, and elevate mood. By integrating the science of color with ancient principles of chromotherapy, you’re not just decorating—you’re designing for wellbeing.

Ever wonder why Lokahi has selected such contrasted colors? See the balancing effects of our color pallet below!

Primary Colors of Lokahi Holistic Therapy

Kiwi Green: Green is known as the color of life. This is in part due to our ability as trichomats (animals that poses three main cone cells within our retinas that enable us to see the waves of light that emit the colors we all know) to recognize this color with the most ease and signifies growth.

Green falls perfectly in the middle of the color spectrum, emits medium wave lengths of visible light detected by our M-cones and are the easiest for our eyes to interpret. Overall, this is why most shades of green produce a calming and relaxing effect.

We selected this specific hue as the yellow tones also invite our L cones, those responsible for seeing hues of red to become active. This warming effect adds vitality and inspiration offered by its more zesty and bright companion, lime green, while maintaining the balancing and harmonizing effect of a softer, pistachio-like hue of green.

Hibiscus Pink: Pink, (observed by our L-cones), is the color associated with nurturing and love with a softer effect than the strong stimulating love or even aggression that can be induced by bold shades of red. On the other end of the spectrum of pink, excessively warm and soft shades like pale rose, can be interpreted as weak.

We chose hibiscus—a stronger, cooler shade of pink—for its ability to cultivate not only compassion and empathy toward others but also resilience and self-advocacy within ourselves. Its cooler undertones subtly activate the S-cones, our blue-perceiving retinal cells, offering an emotionally cooling and stabilizing counterbalance to the warmth of kiwi. This interplay supports a grounded sense of inner strength while nurturing heartfelt connection.

Chocolate Brown: By combining shades of pink and green together, this creates a spectrum of browns. This is because in order to observe brown, we are primarily activating our red-observing L-cones and green observing M-cones but even slight activation of our blue-observing S-cones takes place.

The color of the earth, brown produces sensations of grounding, safety, dependability and support. Like the other colors we have seen, different hues of brown produce different effects. On one end of the spectrum, brown can produce dull, stagnant or even lame effects while on the other end closer to its counter-part, black, it can be seen as excessively demanding or unaccommodating.

We selected the hue of chocolate brown which falls approximately in the middle of this spectrum inviting in activation of all three color-perceiving cones encouraging feelings of stability and strength as well as warmth and relaxation.

Interested in learning more about color theory? Check out our citations and resources:

Birren, F. (2024). Color psychology and color therapy: A factual study of the influence of color on human life. Mockingbird Press.

Haller, K. (2019). The little book of colour: How to use the psychology of colour to Transform your life. Penguin Life, an imprint of Penguin Books.

How to Use Color to Enhance Mood and Productivity: Leveraging Chromotherapy, Neuroscience and Lighting Design for a Healthier Space