Light. Switch.
Have you ever been in a big box store, like Walmart or Target, and started to feel gross? Or maybe you’ve been inside a hospital or school and gotten an instant headache? Well, if you answered yes to either question, you are not alone. I too experience a wonkiness in these types of places and I have a theory as to why….there’s a lack of natural light.
Call me dramatic, but the lack of natural light coupled with an onslaught of fluorescent or LED overhead lighting is a form of kryptonite, detrimental to my health, and your health too.
Fluorescent lighting can:
• disturb circadian rhythms
• cause eye strain and trigger migraines
• worsen anxiety
• negatively affect mood
I love teaching my fitness classes in studios with an abundance of natural light, and when there is a need for lighting, I prefer to turn on wall sconces (rather than overhead fixtures), use dimmer switches, and ideally, the bulbs are incandescent.
At home, I touch the light switch sparingly, but when I do, I use lamps. I have a huge collect of salt lamps, which might seem a little dorky, but they give a soothing glow, can act like night lights in the darkness, and clean the air.
Nothing beats Mother Nature though. The best light is outside, so get out there when you can, but if you can’t, do what I do and take in the natural light from a window. I’m a big fan of looking out a window and watching the shifting light like a movie. Just five minutes of “good” light can be reviving!
The airport can be quite a physically taxing place, but at least it has windows and the potential for natural light. Next time you find yourself biding your time, awaiting a flight, cozy up to a window.
It’s basketball season for my teenaged son, and all of his games are indoors at night, so you can imagine - it’s two hours of very unnatural light - but this is the world we live in. We can’t control our environment all of the time and we don’t want to miss out, so grin and bear it. Yes, you read that right…sometimes we just have to grin and bear it. The show must go on… nothing’s perfect. However, when you do control the lighting, make it as unassaulting as possible.
So to recap:
1. Get speedy when necessary, and get out of those Walmarts and Targets and other windowless places as quickly as possible.
2. Get outside. (Outside is a cure!)
3. Become aware of the light in your home and work environments, and make sure that light is as natural as possible.
(Thanks for reading all the way to the end. 🤗)
My husband and I recently moved to a small town in Washington state. We have wonderful natural light indoors ,and plenty of parks and hiking. It’s a joy to walk every day!