How SAD Lights Can Boost Your Mood and Energy

Daylight Savings is upon us.  The clocks have fallen back, and the sunlight we rely on for our mental well-being is largely gone.

Living around the 45^th Parallel, like living anywhere, has its advantages and its disadvantages.  We all know the advantages like amazing weather even in the summer, not too hot with great sleeping weather at night and the majesty of the natural world all around us.  It sure is nice living here…except that during the winter the sun is in short supply.

This is all made worse by our dedication to the tradition of turning our clocks back an hour in the late Fall.  Even for us early risers, there’s just not enough sun to go around.  For many of us, the sun has already gone down by the time we are leaving our jobs, and this can get downright depressing!

Many of us suffer from low-grade or even severe depression during the late Fall and Winter months.  This is perfectly understandable given the small amount of sun we see.  We all know people who leave this area for different climates due to this.

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a real thing.  It affects millions of people in Michigan, but the good news is that it is easily treatable.  Aside from supplementing Vitamin D3, I like to use a little helper called a SAD Light.  It is a 10,000 lumen light that sits on my desk while I work that is only about the size of a tablet.  In my counseling practice, I even sometimes hand it to my clients so that they can get the benefit of it during our hour or so long session.  They are relatively inexpensive, coming in at as low as $30 on Amazon, and they can provide some of the light we require during this season of darkness.

Using a SAD Light for as little as half an hour to an hour per day can mean the difference between being depressed and feeling energized during the winter months.  It is a simple and inexpensive bio-hack to get us through until we can again find ourselves sunbathing and swimming in Torch Lake!

source https://www.lifesworkclinic.com/how-sad-lights-can-boost-your-mood-and-energy/