AKICOLJ: Full-spectrum lighting?

[oyceter]

Does anyone use full-spectrum lighting to combat SAD? If so, what do you use and how effective have you found it to be?

I'd particularly love something that I can use as a reading light, something compact, and something that automatically turns on at whatever hour of the morning so I don't have to buy one of those switch plug things that does it.

Comments

[katie-m.livejournal.com]

It doesn't meet pretty much any of your requirements (other than the reading light thing a little bit, since, uh, sure, it's light, you could read by it...) But I use the SunLight, Jr. (http://www.sunbox.com/Products/10000LuxBright.asp) The first year I had it I tried to use it at home as directed--there's a whole thing about how much time you have to sit in front of it, and the angle from which the light should hit your eyes, and yada--which was a big failure, so the second winter I brought it in to work and plopped it down next to my computer. This worked a lot better; I wouldn't say that I was suddenly brimming with cheer instead of downhearted, but it did keep me more alert and made me feel less like all I wanted to do in the world was climb under my desk and take a nap.

I do have to explain it to people a lot, though. "Wow," they say, "that light is very bright!" Yes, I say. Yes it is.