Ask a doctor on the topic of General medicine

Sparks from the light switch

May 3, 2015 | 15,00 EUR | answered by Dr. med. Frauke Gehring

Good evening,

I hope you can answer this question for me. I unfortunately suffer from panic attacks related to illnesses, and just now I flipped a light switch and the fuse blew out, causing a spark at the light switch.
Naturally, my adrenaline immediately kicked in. I didn't actually feel an electric shock, but I'm afraid that I may not have noticed it due to the adrenaline, or that I'm not remembering it correctly due to the excitement. Would you definitely feel an electric shock? Now I'm worried about getting heart problems or something, and I'm wondering if I should get checked out. This all happened about 30 minutes ago.
I unfortunately googled it, and now I feel a slight tingling sensation in my left hand, but maybe that's just my mind playing tricks on me because I'm so worked up.
Can you get a shock from a light switch? It's made of plastic, but the spark was clearly visible and the fuse did blow out.
I'm very unsure about what to do.

Best regards.

Dr. med. Frauke Gehring

Good day,

You can rest assured, as every electric shock is felt! Even the tiny ones, when our shoes are charged. Of course, you would have felt a dangerous one.
Spark and short circuit do not always come with an electric shock.
Therefore, you don't need to do anything, just have the switch replaced.

Warm regards, Dr. Höllerincg