Tried it out: Awake and in a good mood thanks to a daylight lamp?
To brighten up the tired, grey winter mood, I spent two weeks soaking up light: with a daylight lamp. Read on to find out whether this has lifted my spirits and eased the winter doldrums.
A light has dawned on me, and it's daylight. After two enlightening weeks of trial and error, I ask myself: why didn't I dare to try a light therapy lamp earlier in the grey winter? Because although I've often toyed with the idea, I didn't quite reckon with noticeable success. But now I wanted to find out for my tried-and-tested-series.
Daylight lamps lift the mood - for me too?
The first thing I did beforehand was to find out how much I could hope for in terms of alertness and well-being thanks to the light shower. And lo and behold, the literature gave me a positive outlook: Experts agree that the additional light during the darker months of the year has the potential to support the sleep-wake rhythm and alleviate the symptoms of winter depression. That doesn't sound bad. And so I start my new trial weeks with anticipation and a hunger for sunshine.
During this time, I have two light therapy lamps in use, which I also use for product tests. You can read my impressions of the TL 20 and TL 100 from Beurer here:
Full enlightenment with the first blink of an eye
Not least in an exciting interview with chronobiologist Henrik Oster, I learnt that the timing of the light shower is crucial if I want to positively influence my internal clock.
"Can I give my internal clock a boost with a light shower in the afternoon?" I asked the expert at the time. His answer was clear:
"It doesn't help much if you use a light shower in the early afternoon. At least it has very little effect on the internal clock, as it is insensitive to light at midday. It can only adapt to the marginal phases of the night. Timing is therefore important." And the manufacturers of light therapy lamps also generally state that a morning light shower between 6 and 8 a.m. is most effective.
This makes it clear: I place one of my two daylight lamps right by my bed and the other on my desk.
Source: Anna Sandner
Day 1: And I'm already awake
The wintry dark grey is once again giving its all today, creating ideal conditions for the start of my experiment. There is definitely no danger of the real sun distorting my test results. As the alarm clock rings, I press the button on the TL 20 and the bedroom is brightly lit at a stroke. The 10000 lux is quite something. The light is not dazzling, but creates a pleasant atmosphere.
Wonderful, my mood is immediately better. Of course, this can't be due to any physiological improvements after just a few minutes. But the colour of the light alone, which corresponds to that of sunlight, chases away the gloomy winter mood a little.
When I sit down at my desk a little later, I switch on my own little sun here too - this time the TL 100, which appears even brighter thanks to its larger illuminated surface. But I'm not dazzled by it either. It stands next to my computer on the desk and shines at me from the side.
An illuminating test start
It is important that the light can fall on the retina of the eyes, slightly to the side, so that I am not looking directly into the lamp. The closer I sit to it, the higher the illuminance that reaches my eyes. I only reach the desired 10000 lux at a distance of 10 cm. That's too close for me and disturbs my work. I find about 25 cm more comfortable. According to the manufacturer, I can make up for the reduced illuminance by using the lamp for longer. At my distance, this means at least an hour of light showering to achieve a noticeable effect. No problem, I don't intend to switch off my replacement sun so quickly.
Source: Anna Sandner
In the early evening, I am completely blown away by my lack of tiredness. And that's after a short night and a full day. I somehow feel less exhausted than usual after a day like this. I'm still putting these impressions down to the placebo effect. I can expect the first noticeable changes after three to four days at the earliest. Nevertheless, I'm already looking forward to the next morning, which won't be in the dark for the first few hours, as is typical in winter.
Days 2 to 5: I've never had so much sun in winter
My first impression is confirmed over the next few days: the light therapy makes me more alert and lively. Every morning I enjoy the bright bedroom and the feeling that the sun has already risen. I've also improved my morning routine in other ways (you can find out how in the other tried-out episodes) so that I start the day easily in the morning. But the extra daylight definitely has an effect on me.
The most noticeable effect is that my eyes are not so tired. I feel wide awake as soon as I get up, which usually takes a while. I am thrilled. After my discovery of morning lemon water, I think I've found the next big game changer when it comes to waking up.
If you want to find out more about the topic of light therapy and daylight lamps, you can find background information and answers to frequently asked questions here:
Days 6 to 10: I have competition
I'm not surprised that after a few days my human flatmates want to compete with me for my daylight lamps. After all, I've been raving about the positive effect for days, and not just casually. But I also have to compete with my light-loving four-legged friends to get a place in the sun. After a week, my two cats have obviously also taken a liking to the lamps, and the best places in the sun are quickly taken.
Source: Anna Sandner
Source: Anna Sandner
I'm not surprised, though, as the cats also benefit from the soothing light. So the lamps stay switched on all day so that everyone gets their chance to sunbathe.
After one week of trialling, it's absolutely clear that it's going to be several trial weeks. I'm not ready to part ways again. So I'm adding another week.
Days 11 to 14: It has never been so easy to establish a new routine
One of the biggest challenges with any change is staying on the ball and establishing a new routine. This has been the most difficult part of many a trial week. Not so this time: from day one, I pressed the on button on my lamp first thing in the morning. Of course, unlike coffee-deprivation, this costs money. or training-programme. Nevertheless, I was surprised at how much I still look forward to the light shower every morning after two weeks and haven't forgotten it for a single day.
But in the end, I can definitely feel the effect: I feel awake more quickly in the morning and my eyes in particular are not tired. I'm fit during the day, not even the afternoon slump catches up with me. I also feel more balanced in the evening and not so exhausted from the day. My sleep was already good before these trial weeks, so I can't see any changes here. On the other hand, I have more energy throughout the day for the same amount of sleep.
Conclusion: Never again without a daylight lamp!
Rarely has a trial week (or two) been as pleasant and productive as this one. For a change, I didn't have to torture myself, overcome myself or give up anything. There was simply something extra - namely daylight. I enjoyed it to the full and benefited greatly in terms of alertness and balance. Even though my experiment is now officially over, I don't want to miss out on daylight from the socket and will stick with it for the rest of the winter.
You can read about how I fared in my other trial weeks here:
Header image: Anna Sandner
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Science editor and biologist. I love animals and am fascinated by plants, their abilities and everything you can do with them. That's why my favourite place is always outside - somewhere in nature, preferably in my wild garden.
