Feeling 'Lighter'

I'm back from a long slumber away from blogging. I had every intention to be dedicated with my blog and post regularly, but life does generally get in the way. Autumn was the start of my emotional decline. My mood was incredibly low and I couldn't understand why. It turns out, after many tears, self berating and general feeling rubbish, I have Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). The Dr recommended using light therapy as during our discussions (and looking back through past diaries) the low mood was found to be a recurring pattern during late Autumn and Winter months.

I have to admit I was really sceptical, I just couldn't see how a light would make any difference at all. I decided to take vitamin D alongside the light therapy too. My husband did lots of thorough research online and we ended up buying a Redstone SAD Light Box. Apparently you need to buy a light of 10,000 Lux for it to be effective. So now I switch on my light for twenty minutes each morning whilst putting on my make-up. I'm very pleased to say it has made such a huge difference. After a week it definitely improved my mood.

Redstone Light Box

Obviously I'd love to get my sunlight via a holiday to some exotic beach somewhere, but I don't have the spare pennies for that at the moment. The light box is a good substitute for now. Please though, if anyone else feels like this during the grey, dull Winter months, consider a light box. It really has helped me. Another tip, keep a journal or diary. Without mine, I wouldn't have noticed a pattern with my low mood. Plus, I do believe writing your thoughts down can be really cathartic. I use a little book which I write a thought down for each day. I've also now started journalling in a travellers notebook which I use to document different memories from each month, I collage, draw, paint and write in it.