When should you start using a SAD lamp

Start with 20 to 30 minutes of the light box every morning to see if that it helps boost your mood and energy.One woman gave it a try to combat her winter blues.Fall/winter versus spring/summer), you might begin light therapy at the onset of fall when the days become shorter and more overcast.The therapeutic level of illumination has several known physiological effects, though its therapeutic mechanism is still unclear.As your seedlings start to grow, raise the light, keeping your plants a few inches away from it;

Light therapy may be recommended when sad symptoms are severe enough to affect patients' daily lives.Start light therapy in the early morning, as soon as possible after awakening (between 6:00 a.m.It's key to begin light therapy as soon as the days get shorter in late autumn to prevent depressive symptoms from showing up several weeks later, dr.Plus, light therapy requires a minimum of 30 minutes per day, every day, from the time symptoms start until the spring when you naturally begin to feel better, says kelly j.What causes seasonal affective disorder?

Don't wear a sun visor or sunglasses.The rcp advises using your lamp at breakfast time to help regulate the circadian pattern of melatonin secretion, something that is generally disrupted in sad sufferers.Use of a light box can offer relief.Daily exposure to this bright light is the treatment method most often recommended for patients with seasonal affective disorder (sad), a form of depression that occurs as a result of reduced exposure to sunlight in the fall, winter and spring.It's thought the light may improve sad by encouraging your brain to reduce the production of melatonin (a hormone that makes you sleepy) and increase the production of serotonin (a hormone that affects your mood).

But for some people, light therapy may be more effective when combined with another sad treatment, such as an antidepressant or psychotherapy, also called talk therapy.If isn't making a difference, try longer periods, up to 60 minutes each morning.Response usually starts in a few days, and by two weeks the symptoms should be definitely improving.