This picture shows my Sunbox DL (Desk Light)in action. I bought my light from Sunbox over ten years ago. It cost $250.00 and it has been well worth that (what was for me) hefty price. I bought it before I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, a few years after I was diagnosed with major depression.
As of today, you can buy a Sunbox DL on sale for $190.00 – it still usually costs $250.00. (By the way, I don’t work for this company! I just love their product and customer service.) I felt such a benefit from using it that I brought it to a work conference four hundred miles away, and I brought it to the maternity hospital when I had my first baby! I couldn’t care less who gave me a strange look. I didn’t feel a dramatic change from using it, but I definitely felt it lifted my depression in a subtle way.
If you buy a therapeutic light, you may be able to get reimbursement from your health insurance company if you submit a doctor’s letter. In 2004, Sunbox had a sample letter form on their website. I could print it out, have my doctor sign it (including my diagnosis of depression) and then submit to the health insurance company. My HealthNet insurance company rejected my claim, unfortunately, but it was worth a try. The sample letters no longer appear on Sunbox’s website, but I’d contact their staff to double-check about this reimbursement possibility; their email is sunbox@aol.com and their phone number: 1-800-548-3968 or 1-800-Lite-You.
Sunbox is the most reputable company I know of and is endorsed by Dr. Norman Rosenthal, a South African author, psychiatrist and scientist. He was the first psychiatrist to describe winter depression or seasonal affective disorder (SAD), and he pioneered the use of light therapy for its treatment.
One of the things I love about my light is that it is SUPER-easy to use – I just flick a switch and have a seat in front of it after I crawl out of bed in the morning. I can read or surf the internet while using my light. I feel instant gratification as the bright light envelops me. I use it for about twenty-to-thirty minutes and opinions differ on the optimum amount of time to use the light.
The “Bright Light Therapy for Bipolar” article I posted below may seem dated since it’s from 2008, but the findings are impressive. The study’s control group was very small, but I loved its promising outcome: ” Of the nine women treated, six achieved some degree of response, with several reaching full recovery from depressive symptoms.”
There is also a new kid on the light therapy block called the Valkee Bright Light Headset. Valkee earphones are worn so one can go just about anywhere while simultaneously receiving light-therapy-quality benefits. These Finland-made earphones are not cheap – they run just under $300.00. For more information check out: https://www.facebook.com/ValkeeCompany)
Have a great Sunday, and if you live with bipolar disorder, take a couple minutes to review the study below.
take care,
Dyane
A new study finds bright light therapy can ease bipolar depression in some patients. Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine’s Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic studied nine women with bipolar disorder to examine the effects of light therapy in the morning or at midday on mood symptoms. “There are limited effective treatments for the depressive phase of bipolar disorder,” said Dorothy Sit, M.D., assistant professor of psychiatry and the study’s first author. “While there are treatments that are effective for mania, the major problem is the depression, which can linger so long that it never really goes away.” The study is published in the journal Bipolar Disorders. Women with bipolar depression were given light boxes and instructed on how to use them at home. The women used the light boxes daily for two-week stretches of 15, 30 and 45 minutes. Some patients responded extremely well to the light therapy, and their symptoms of depression disappeared. The responders to light therapy stayed on the light therapy for an additional three or four months. Four patients received morning light, and five used their light boxes at midday. Participants also continued to take their prescribed medications throughout the study period. “Three of the women who received morning light initially developed what we call a mixed state, with symptoms of depression and mania that occur all at once – racing thoughts, irritability, sleeplessness, anxiety and low mood,” said Dr. Sit. “But when another group began with midday light therapy, we found a much more stable response.” Of the nine women treated, six achieved some degree of response, with several reaching full recovery from depressive symptoms. While most attained their best recovery with midday light, a few responded more fully to a final adjustment to morning light. “People with bipolar disorder are exquisitely sensitive to morning light, so this profound effect of morning treatment leading to mixed states is very informative and forces us to ask more questions,” said Dr. Sit. “Did we introduce light too early and disrupt circadian rhythms and sleep patterns?” People with bipolar disorder are known to be sensitive to changes in outdoor ambient light and to seasonal changes. Researchers are asking whether the risk of suicide in patients with bipolar disorder could be linked to changes in light exposure.“ In our study, 44 percent of patients were full responders, and 22 percent were partial responders,” Dr. Sit and her colleagues write. “Light therapy, therefore, is an attractive and possibly effective augmentation strategy to improve the likelihood of full-treatment response.”Optimal response was observed with midday light therapy for 45 or 60 minutes daily, noted Dr. Sit. Source: University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences
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Vegan Keto for Bipolar Disorder 
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