There are a lot of options out there when it comes to selecting a light therapy device - they vary in intensity, and some even offer adjustable brightness. I've tested and evaluated some of the most popular light therapy lamps on the market. A light therapy session can mimic the experience of a sunny day - minus the ultraviolet rays - if only for a few minutes. A bright sunny day exposes you to about 100,000 lux or more, while you might get only about 2,000 lux of light exposure on an overcast day. For this, you need a lamp that emits about 10,000 lux of light, which is higher than the artificial light from your home's fixtures and other lamps. Light therapy lamps try to mimic the extra hours of sunlight from spring and summer that we don't get in fall and winter.
When my psychiatrist diagnosed me with SAD, she recommended light therapy, one of the most popular treatments and one that's backed up with a ton of documented research. Doctors believe that the lack of sunlight can trigger a chemical change in the brain, which can make you feel sad, unmotivated, sluggish and, essentially, depressed. When the days get shorter and darker, we get less exposure to natural sunlight. With the end of summer slowly creeping toward us, I can look forward to several months of feeling sluggish, depressed and lethargic.
This is brought on by the shorter and colder days of autumn and winter and can have a huge impact on my energy level and overall mood. Many people like me, who live in more overcast climates, deal with seasonal affective disorder (aka SAD) or seasonal depression.