Illuminate: The Transformative Power of Light

Are you reading this article during the fall season?

If so, daylight hours will continue to decrease until the end of December (winter solstice). And, depending on where you live, the daylight may be whittled down to less than eight hours – which affects mood, behavior, and sleep.

**What to do with less light in the day?**

Go outside.

That’s right. I repeat: Go outside.

Outdoor light is a powerful cue for hormones, blood pressure, metabolism, sleep, and countless other functions including mental health.¹ Even if it’s a gray day, going outside for at least 30 minutes, every day, will support your internal clock (circadian rhythm). And controlling our exposure to light, both indoors and outdoors, helps our sleep, improves mood, decreases depression²³⁴⁵ and helps us to work through Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).

What is Seasonal Affective Disorder (AKA: SAD)?

SAD is a type of depression characterized by fatigue, decreased energy, changes in appetite, increased sleep, and a loss of interest in activities – mostly occurring when there is less sunlight during the fall and winter months.

What helps with SAD?

Light therapy is the treatment of choice for SAD.

Interested in SAD lights? Check out this New York Times article for SAD therapy lamp recommendations.6

Light from computer screens, TVs, iPads, and cell phones.

We use our mobile devices throughout the day – and evening. And when we are in bed many of us wind down by scrolling reddit, texting friends, checking work email, playing a game, or … reading this article.

So, this can be a challenging task: Don’t use your phone (computer or iPad) in bed, before going to sleep. Why? Using your phone in bed, before sleep, negatively affects your mood, sleep quality, memory, and concentration.⁷

Aside from using your phone, what other ways can you ease into a pleasant bedtime routine? Perhaps this is a time to journal, read a book, or take a bath.

Suggestion: If you use the phone to wake up, try putting it away from the bed before going to sleep – and look into getting alarms with lights (also known as wake-up lights) as part of your wake up process. Interested? Check out the New York Times article about the best types of Sunrise Alarm clocks.

**What room are you in? Where is the light coming from? How does this light make you feel?**

Light and color affect (and stimulate) attention, perception, and can make specific environments (bedrooms, living rooms, and offices) relaxing.⁸

Want to improve the light in your space? Here are some questions to ask:

What room do I spend most of my time in? If it involves a desk, where is that desk placed? What kind of light is in my space?

Can I make choices of where I want to adjust that light? (Is there a dimmer switch? If not, would that be helpful?)

If you are in front of a computer – have you looked into variations of screen color? Or the types of lights you can place near your computer⁹ workspace?

More About Lighting …

Carolyn Woofter is an interior designer in Portland, Oregon.

Read on as Carolyn provides insight on light placement, lighting types, quality/affordability of lighting, and lightbulb types.

Where to place light in the room?

Carolyn explains: When thinking about lighting placement in a room, you need to think about how you use the room…what types of activities take place in this room?

These issues will generally dictate where you place your lighting. For example, a kitchen will need lighting where the work happens, at the countertops.

How do you want the room to feel? Light and airy? Cozy and intimate? These are critical questions when finalizing your lighting placement.

What types of lighting do I need in my room?

Carolyn explains: It is best to use different types of lighting in any room in your house. Think of this in terms of layers of lighting…you have overhead lighting, table/floor lamps, wall sconces, tall buffet lamps, art lighting, candles, etc.

In my own home, I find that I use overhead lighting the least. It’s usually a bit too bright unless you really need the extra wattage.

Using a variety of lighting types makes a room much more versatile in terms of use and improves the light quality tremendously. During our Oregon winters, it’s important to utilize all these layers of lighting and don’t forget candles! Candles add a lovely warm glow to a room that you cannot get from electric lighting.

Where do I find good quality, affordable lighting?

Carolyn explains: Finding good quality lighting at an affordable price is a challenge. It’s important to find lamps that have decent weight to them…you don’t want your table/floor lamps tipping over because they are too lightweight. I generally prefer to buy lighting in person so I can touch it, pick it up, get an accurate sense of what the finish looks like and to see it lit in a space.

It’s very hard to discern the look and quality of the finish when you’re looking at a computer image. Color and finish do not always translate well or accurately on a computer screen.

Buying vintage lighting is my preference because the quality is usually quite good. It’s also more affordable than buying new. Don’t let an ugly lamp shade deter you from buying a beautiful lamp…you can always find a substitute and it’s a great way to personalize your lighting. There are so many beautiful shades out there!

I find a lot of gorgeous lighting and shades on Etsy. There are lots of beautiful options and the seller can provide any details you might need clarified before purchase. For new lighting, I really like Lighting NY. It’s a great website and the sales people are very helpful. They also offer very good and competitive pricing as well as an amazing selection.

What type of bulb do I need?

Carolyn explains: There are many bulb options when it comes to residential lighting, but the main three are incandescent, Light Emitting Diode (LED) and Compact Fluorescent bulbs.

Incandescent will give you warm light but is not energy efficient.

LED and Compact Fluorescent bulbs are much more energy efficient and have come a long way in terms of shape and light quality.

You should always go with a warmer, white light as opposed to cool blue light. It casts a much more pleasant glow rather than the cool blue tones that zap the energy from a room.

Light Matters.

Questions? Ideas? Want to Connect? Reach out.

References

1
Stone, Will. November 8, 2024. Getting more light in the day and less at night is good for your health. Here’s why.Shots Health News from National Public Radio. https://www.npr.org/transcripts/nx-s1-5178149
2
Rybak Y.E., McNeely H.E., Mackenzie B.E., Jain U.R., Levitan R.D. An open trial of light therapy in adult attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. J. Clin. Psychiatry. 2006; 67:1527–1535. doi: 10.4088/JCP.v67n1006. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
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Terman M. Evolving applications of light therapy. Sleep Med. Rev. 2007;11:497–507. doi: 10.1016/j.smrv.2007.06.003. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
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Menegaz de Almeida A, Aquino de Moraes FC, Cavalcanti Souza ME, Cavalcanti Orestes Cardoso JH, Tamashiro ; F, Miranda C, Fernandes L, Kreuz M, Alves Kelly F. Bright Light Therapy for Nonseasonal Depressive Disorders: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. JAMA Psychiatry. 2024 Oct 2:e242871. doi: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2024.2871. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 39356500; PMCID: PMC11447633.
5
Milosavljevic N. How Does Light Regulate Mood and Behavioral State? Clocks & Sleep. 2019; 1(3):319-331. https://doi.org/10.3390/clockssleep1030
6
Dillon,K. Perling, A. Redd, N. September 30, 2024. The Best Light Therapy Lamp. New York Times Wirecutter. https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-light-therapy-lamp/
7
Siraji, M.A., Spitschan, M., Kalavally, V. et al. Light exposure behaviors predict mood, memory and sleep quality. Sci Rep 13, 12425 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-39636-y
8
Xie X, Cai J, Fang H, Tang X, Yamanaka T. Effects of colored lights on an individual’s affective impressions in the observation process. Front Psychol. 2022 Dec 1;13:938636. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.938636. PMID: 36533028; PMCID: PMC9752890.
9
Han, Lu et al. ‘Desktop Lighting for Comfortable Use of a Computer Screen’. 1 Jan. 2021 : S209 – S221.