light boxes, are these any good?

sebastianj

Hi,
I am sure someone has used 'light box' here, can you please share your knowledge. What I need to know is, which one is good and the cost of using these 'electricity' maintenance etc.
thanks in anticipation,
sebastian

Figment

Define what you mean by light box

sebastianj

apparently it cheers people up, it is therapeutic and for people who are 'sad' and suffer from not enough day light.
sebastian

Torry_Quine

I've used one for the last couple of years and will be starting again soon. It cost me £45 from Amazon and is small and portable. Very easy to use and I do feel the difference. There is no maintenance and I doubt it costs much to run at all.

DCFC79

Figment wrote: »

Define what you mean by light box

I reckon the OP is refering to 1 of these.

Dave_C_2

sebastianj wrote: »

Hi,
I am sure someone has used 'light box' here, can you please share your knowledge. What I need to know is, which one is good and the cost of using these 'electricity' maintenance etc.
thanks in anticipation, sebastian

In my opinion, Snake Oil

Mankind has lasted for millions of years without the need for light boxes!
On the other side of the coin, it's funny that you don't see adverts for blackout curtains for folks who think they are getting too much daylight.

Never underestimate the power of placebo.

ETA
We have electric lights in our house that we use in the winter. No special light boxes required

Dave

fishybusiness

Mankind has lasted for millions of years without the need for light boxes!

This is true, however mankind has probably found life much easier with the invention of houses and cooking equipment, oh and cars too.

Do not underestimate the power of science

Dave_C_2

In reply to my

Mankind has lasted for millions of years without the need for light boxes!

fishybusiness wrote: »

This is true, however mankind has probably found life much easier with the invention of houses and cooking equipment, oh and cars too.

Do not underestimate the power of science

I was going to go back and edit that line out But as you have replied I must let it stand.

Thinking about it for a little more, evolution should already have weeded out humans who could not adapt to the changing seasonal cycles of night and day.
If stone-age Ugh couldn't be pestered to go out hunting because he was a bit depressed what with with the long nights drawing in and all; then he and the rest of his cave-hold would go hungry .

Science-based medicine has helped an awful lot, but there are some who think cars could have been a mistake.;)

Dave

Torry_Quine

Dave_C wrote: »

In my opinion, Snake Oil

Mankind has lasted for millions of years without the need for light boxes!
On the other side of the coin, it's funny that you don't see adverts for blackout curtains for folks who think they are getting too much daylight.

Never underestimate the power of placebo.

ETA
We have electric lights in our house that we use in the winter. No special light boxes required

Dave

Well its good that you cope with dark winter nights but not all of us can say the same. A light box is very different to a light bulb and can really help with the depression of winter.

Brighton_belle

Dave_C wrote: »

On the other side of the coin, it's funny that you don't see adverts for blackout curtains for folks who think they are getting too much daylight.

I know quite a few people with black out curtains for that very purpose - they were feeling rubbish due to being woken regularly by day light at 4a.m.:D. It is one of those products that doesn't need advertising as it's need is so obvious and it is easily available.

I think during our development as a species, mankind lived in Africa etc. Movement to colder, darker outreaches has been relatively recent in evolutionary terms.
Adults died young in sabre tooth tiger hunting days, so maybe there wasn't enough time to develop the symptoms of SAD.

NeverEnough

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a very real disorder and causes lots of problems for many people during the winter when daylight hours are really reduced. It is not a trivial issue or one to mock. The lightboxes used in the treatment are not "snake oil" at oil, they do improve the symptoms and make a huge difference to the function and life of those affected.

You can buy varying qualities of these lightboxes as with anything, also different sizes. You need to use them for at least an hour a day during the winter. As you do not leave them on all day and all night, electricity costs are not excessive. Sometimes community mental health teams have a few of these available to loan to patients, if you have been referred to one.

If you do buy one, ensure it is from a reputable seller and not some cheap online fake with a useless lightbulb. The spectrum of the light source is paramount - you need to simulate daylight ie 10000 lux.

Hope its helpful for you as it is to so many of my patients. Remember, if your mood is low persistently even though you are using the box, please see your doctor to get help for depression.

All the best with your choices and hope the box helps if you decide to get one. Doesn't matter what size or shape itis, just whatever fits your space and budget. Its not necessary to spend a lot either.