Moving to a new place can be exciting however, it can also come with unforeseen challenges as well. When I moved from Rogers Park to live in a more central area of Chicago I knew that I would have to wake up earlier in order to be on time for my commute. This sounded incredibly easy to me because it seems like one can simply go to sleep earlier and feel like a fresh spring chicken when their alarm sounds. When I was met with the opposite feeling in the morning this was an incredible surprise. For weeks I could not understand exactly why I was so fatigued as if I barely slept throughout the night until I realized that it was the result of waking up in the darkness.
For years, Seasonal Depression / Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) has been extremely talked about on social media with influencers providing the masses with the latest tips and tricks to keep yourself motivated through the gloomy months. The main draw of SAD is the desire to stay in bed all day because of the gloomy winter weather. This disorder can be treated with light therapy according to the Mayo Clinic, “It's thought that this type of light may cause a chemical change in the brain that lifts your mood and eases other symptoms of SAD, such as being tired most of the time and sleeping too much”(2022). This is exactly where I found myself at the beginning of the school year before I decided to take action. First, knowing that I was getting quality sleep was important before I threw money at a device to fix all of my problems. Getting a sunrise alarm clock has brought the best of both worlds to my morning routine as well as quality of sleep. This alarm clock has a light sequence that mimics that of an actual sunrise. The gradual increase of light as well as the alarm sound chosen (mine is chirping birds) makes you really feel like you are waking up alongside the sun. This consistent part of my morning routine is crucial in my sleep and actually feeling rejuvenated.
Dr Allada and colleagues were able to show how different aspects that influence your sleep and wake cycles affect your quality of sleep along with functioning during wake times. While their study relied heavily on altering the sleep schedules of fruit flies and observing the effects on their “body clocks” this is something we can apply to humans. This model organism was able to represent the neurological effects of different disruptions in sleep and in turn, how this affects the organism throughout daily function. They were able to find that different neurons have different reactions to varied stimuli in the morning as well as at night. This is representative of the importance of sunlight in the morning for us humans and how it allows our brains to power up. When we see light we know that it is time for action and productivity where when we are exposed to the opposite we are more sluggish. Sunlight lamps or alarms can reinforce this neurological morning activity through the seasons that may not naturally offer as much.
While sleep may be seen as a luxury lately in our culture, it is the first step of a healthy lifestyle. Being able to recharge your body can lead it to do amazing things and make a huge difference in our day to day. It’s never too late to take control of your sleep and bring a little light into your life.
Resources
Mayo Clinic (2022) Seasonal Affective Disorder Treatment: Choosing a Light Box. Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/seasonal-affective-disorder/in-depth/seasonal-affective-disorder-treatment/art-20048298.
Tomas Andreani, Clark Rosensweig, Shiju Sisobhan, Emmanuel Ogunlana, William Kath, Ravi Allada (2022) Circadian programming of the ellipsoid body sleep homeostat in Drosophila eLife 11:e74327 https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.74327
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