The Best Therapy For SAD

Scientists in the early 1980s, working to discover a treatment for seasonal affective disorder, or SAD, became aware that disturbances in light absorption during the late fall and winter months affected mood in a depressive way. They quickly realized the benefit of light therapy for SAD treatment therapy. Not only does exposure to light help reduce the symptoms of SAD, but it is also used to treat other ailments such as jaundice. These days, this type of treatment is available at home or in hospitals.

Light therapy is relevant and effective in numerous medical conditions and helps sufferers to quickly find energy when winter depression puts them in a dark mood. Light therapy lamps are used to treat seasonal depression, or SAD, and the main symptoms start to manifest in the winter, when the days are shorter and sunlight in minimal. There is less light, and this seasonal change can affect people who are susceptible to SAD.

For those people dealing with SAD, they don’t automatically exhibit all the typical symptoms, so it is very important to contact a doctor for a check up. Light therapy for SAD treatment therapy can help until longer days and more hours of sunlight arrive. Miraculously, the signs of this depression seem to disappear with the arrival of the beautiful days of spring and ample sunlight.

So how do light boxes for bright light therapy work? This type of therapy consists of exposing yourself to the light that an ultraviolet lamp emits. This transmits light to the skin and the eyes. For best results, the intensity of the light should be between 2500 and 10,000 light units. Melatonin is a sleep hormone, which is thought to be partially responsible for the problems linked to diminished light exposure. This hormone is normally secreted at night to help us relax and fall asleep. The thought is that this hormone is somehow blocked from being produced during the day and so our patterns of sleep are disrupted.

Light therapy lamps are relatively easy to use. The first thing you have to remember is that they are used as treatment in hospitals and at home, and they respond in the same way as any normal lighting device, such as desk lights for SAD. However, always verify that the lamps you have will produce ultraviolet light.

The effect of the light exposure on depression is typically felt rather quickly for most people, but can take up to ten days for others with more severe depressive symptoms. There are very few counter indications against light therapy, but it is important to speak with your doctor if you have an eye disorder or are taking photosensitive medication. You will find lots of information light therapy for SAD treatment therapy online at www.mayoclinic.com/health/light-therapy/MY00195.

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