A SAD Light

The down side to long summer days at latitude 47 is long winter days.  In December we got down to just over 8 hours of daylight.  Combining shorts days with our all too often overcast skies leads to Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) causing people to feel a sense of depression they would not otherwise have.

I had thought about getting some grow lights for indoor plants.  The downside of that would be potheads trying to break in to steal non-existent marijuana plants.  I went from having 40 plants on the deck last summer to one last lemon cypress tree which is like a miniature cedar tree due to my deck being off limits for the last 6 months, no plant lights, plant killing cats, and little effort on my part.

While restocking on kitty food, litter and a bale of toilet paper at Costco today, I got their version of an impulse buy stacked by the front door—a 7500 lumen Verilux happylight.  It has been on since I got home.  I feel better.  Does the SAD light work?  I can’t tell the difference between the placebo effect and real therapy.  The practical strategy is to feel better and tell myself it is working.


I am grateful for my SAD light.  Should have got another SAD light 4ish years ago after the last one died.  Progress, not perfection!

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