Am I an Electric Human?

For quite some years now, I have been having an odd problem. I seem to get charged up with static electricity very frequently. As many of my friends and relatives would testify, they have suffered many painful and shocking handshakes with me.

Then there are time periods when this problem becomes especially acute, and touching anything from door curtains to basin knobs to car doors gives me shocks. Sometimes I can even see a blue streak of electricity zapping across my hand to a door handle I am about to touch.

For quite a while, I have been unable to find out why this is happening. My wife just sent me an interesting link to an article HUMANS AND SPARKS - The Cause, Stopping the Pain, and “Electric People, which talks not only about why this phenomenon occurs in humans, but also how some people have a higher tendency to build up static electricity. These special people are nicknamed Electric People in this article.

Somehow, I don’t feel particularly thrilled to be a part of this category of humans. I am sure my frequently-zapped family members and friends would feel the same way. 😉