S.A.D. and artificial light

[kanesa]

Has anyone here used an artificial light source in the winter to combat S.A.D.? Were the results beneficial? I am really considering buying one because by February I am usually suffering from cabin fever and a touch of depression. We have long dark cold winters in WI and I'm trying to find a way to get through it in a better mood this season.

[Racer X]

In Seattle, we just drink. Why do you think it is the microbrew capitol of the world?

[lafinfil]

My sister has used one for about five years or so. Her doctor prescribed it so I think that her
insurance picked up part of the cost.

It is pretty good sized - maybe 16" x 24" or so and sits on two legs that shine it down at a 45° angle.
It sits about 18" off the table surface so basically it makes a great table top reading light.
She uses it in the morning for the prescribed time while she read the paper.

She swears by it - makes a big difference for her

[ztirffritz]

Yakima had the first post-prohibition microbrewery in the US in the early 80s I think. God bless Bert Grant...he made winters endurable

[karsen]

I had to Google what S.A.D. was. Apparently it doesn't affect us Floridians.

Not to be insensitive but it sounds like a made up disorder to me. Get outside and snowboard or something. I bet if George Carlin was alive he'd have a field day with this one.

[mattkime]

Racer X wrote:
In Seattle, we just drink. Why do you think it is the microbrew capitol of the world?

i guess you've never been to wisconsin

[dmann]

karsen,
I am not speaking for kanesa, but you should realize that during the winter months here in the Midwest, you can literally go days without real sunlight.

Most days are very gray and cloudy whether it snows or not. This problem is compounded by the fact that due to the move back to Standard vs. Daylight Savings time, most people go to work while it is still dark outside and come back home once it is dark again. I am in Chicago and it was dark at 4:40 this afternoon.

Enjoying a few hours of sunlight on the weekends is not enough for many people.

DM

[anonymouse1]

SAD is a real, clinically proven, disorder.

I made one out of some 150 watt full spectrum CFL lightbulbs, a couple pieces of wood, a couple of sockets, and the wire to plug into the wall. Took maybe a couple of hours. My wife says it helps her a lot.

[Blurb]

Take a vitamin D supplement every day during the winter and that may help as well. Even though they've done studies to prove the existence of SAD and that it does indeed respond to light exposure, there's alot of thought that the real culprit is deficiency of vitamin D, since sunlight exposure to the skin causes us to produce vitamin D. Obviously, especially in the northern climes, people don't get much sunlight to skin time, and in some areas may go weeks or months without significant sun exposure at all. Unfortunately they've only recently started to do studies to prove/disprove the vitamin D link.

So, here's the winter PSA: Everyone needs at least 800 units of it a day, and many of us are not getting that.

[DewGuy]

Yeah and if the lack of sunshine isn't enough, some of us Michiganders keep our windows covered to help keep out the cold, so we get the double whammy as far as lack of sunshine/daylight goes.