Light therapy is a relatively new way to treat several different kinds of disorders ranging from seasonal affective disorder to jet lag. It can be helpful and has very few side effects. Can light therapy can be for you?
What exactly is light therapy? An effective therapy that simulates natural outdoor light to help restore the body's natural rhythms and help people overcome some mood disorders. Light therapy uses a special light that emits a light that is brighter than that of a normal household lamp. Many light therapy boxes emit a light that is brighter and more intense than the average outdoor light, a short session of exposure to the light usually helps.
Why is light therapy used? Light therapy is used to simulate natural, outdoor light. Research has shown that exposure to natural light helpsto maintain our body's natural rhythm. When we aren't exposed to much natural light it can upset the normal rhythm and cause disorders such as depression and seasonal affective disorder SAD. This therapy can also help to treat conditions such as jet lag, post-partum depression, and obsessive compulsive disorder OCD. Exposure to a light box can even help people who work varying shifts restore a normal sleep cycle.
What are the risks? Light therapy has a few risks, but they are generally mild. Some of the side effects may include: headache, nausea, eyestrain, agitation, fatigue, and irritability. Usually side effects will resolve themselves soon after beginning light therapy treatment. However if they don't go away on their own, try reducing the time that the treatment is used or change the time of day that you use the light.
A word of caution, light therapy may trigger episodes of mania in patients with bipolar disorder. There could also be a risk of suicidal thoughts in patients who are suffering from severe depression. If you are currently being treated for one of these disorders, please check with your doctor before starting any kind of alternative therapy.
How to get the most from your therapy sessions. For best results, you should use your light box at the same time each day. Most health care professionals recommend using the box soon after you wake up every day. Begin with a 15 minute session and slowly work up to 30 minutes to two hours. Consistency is important when using a light box. You might want to skip a day, but make your therapy time productive time. Place the box on a table near you and then read a book or watch television.
Light therapy may not work for every mood disorder, but it could help reduce symptoms and help you find relief. Spending some time in front of a light box every day could help you find joy in the little things again.
This article was written by Jamie Rona. Jamie is a mother of three who enjoys fitness and the outdoors. She loves to relax at the end of the day with a smoothie made with her hand held blender. Check out her website, www.milkshakemaker.org to learn all about different types of milkshake makers, blenders, and smoothie makers so you can make delicious treats too!
Friday, February 26, 2010
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Stress Relievers - Finding Peace in a Crazy World!
With the busy lives we lead just about everybody experiences stress in their lives. We are faced with stress from many different areas. Not only are we faced with the usual stresses of work and home, but we are also faced with stress in the world around us as well. We have traffic, city noise, and technology like TV's and radios, computers and phones. And don't forget the fact that we have artificial light throughout the day and night. Is it any wonder we feel anxious and overwhelmed?
Even if you don't realize it, your body starts to crave a more peaceful environment when faced with stressful situations. No doubt everyone has wanted to get into bed and crawl under the covers at some point of their life! We need to make the time to recharge and revitalize so we can handle the daily stress we face. If we don't find ways to relieve stress and anxiety in our lives, we may have bouts with depression, anxiety or physical illness. By using stress management ideas we can help keep stress from increasing and creating an emotional breakdown or a physical illness.
There are several different kinds of stress management techniques that can be helpful in overcoming the stress that we face. Some ways of overcoming stress can be as simple as working to overcome the source of the stress, being more assertive, or removing yourself from the cause of the stress completely.
A lot of the stress that we face comes from our jobs. There are a couple of main causes of stress on the job: the work itself and the people we work with. Pressures at work can include difficult tasks that seem overwhelming, pressing deadlines, and not having enough hours in the day to accomplish the assignments we need to do.
Although workplace stress cannot always be avoided, it can be managed. If you find yourself constantly being interrupted while trying to do your work, see if you can alter your work schedule so you can do your work when there are fewer people in the office. If you can't do this, use time management ideas to complete overwhelming jobs during the slowest time of your workday.
We all have to deal with difficult people and on the job this is a great cause of stress. Coworkers and uptight bosses can be a source of stress as well as angry customers. By learning to be assertive you can express your concerns without coming across as being aggressive or threatening. If necessary, find a book or an assertiveness training course that will teach you how to set defined boundaries. By creating boundaries and letting others know when they cross those boundaries you will become free from the emotional stress created by dealing with difficult people. Assertiveness training can also help with stressful family relationships as well.
Some other ideas to help relieve stress on the job are simple things such as taking scheduled breaks, having a clean and pleasant work area, and having a definite starting and ending time to your day. Giving yourself time for a break helps you to regroup and return to your work with a fresh outlook. A simple 15 minute break can do wonders for your productivity. Plus, if your work area is an area you like to be, the quality of your work will increase. It is amazing how little changes like these can decrease your work related stress.
You can deal with stress by developing a positive attitude. Keep in mind that no one has a perfect life and that difficult situations happen to everyone. If you have the attitude that this too shall pass, you are freeing yourself from unnecessary anxiety and worry. We all have problems to deal with, but we can learn to overcome rather than let the problems overcome us.
Stress is a part of the busy lives we live and we will never be free of it. But by learning to change our thinking from negative to positive, becoming more assertive, practice time management skills and looking for the good we will see that life is good. You can reduce your stress and discover the peace and contentment you want.
This article was written by Jamie Rona. Jamie is a mother of three who enjoys fitness and the outdoors. She loves to make fun treat for her kids with her milkshake maker. Check out her new website, www.milkshakemaker.org to learn all about getting the best milkshake maker so you can make great homemade milkshakes too!
Even if you don't realize it, your body starts to crave a more peaceful environment when faced with stressful situations. No doubt everyone has wanted to get into bed and crawl under the covers at some point of their life! We need to make the time to recharge and revitalize so we can handle the daily stress we face. If we don't find ways to relieve stress and anxiety in our lives, we may have bouts with depression, anxiety or physical illness. By using stress management ideas we can help keep stress from increasing and creating an emotional breakdown or a physical illness.
There are several different kinds of stress management techniques that can be helpful in overcoming the stress that we face. Some ways of overcoming stress can be as simple as working to overcome the source of the stress, being more assertive, or removing yourself from the cause of the stress completely.
A lot of the stress that we face comes from our jobs. There are a couple of main causes of stress on the job: the work itself and the people we work with. Pressures at work can include difficult tasks that seem overwhelming, pressing deadlines, and not having enough hours in the day to accomplish the assignments we need to do.
Although workplace stress cannot always be avoided, it can be managed. If you find yourself constantly being interrupted while trying to do your work, see if you can alter your work schedule so you can do your work when there are fewer people in the office. If you can't do this, use time management ideas to complete overwhelming jobs during the slowest time of your workday.
We all have to deal with difficult people and on the job this is a great cause of stress. Coworkers and uptight bosses can be a source of stress as well as angry customers. By learning to be assertive you can express your concerns without coming across as being aggressive or threatening. If necessary, find a book or an assertiveness training course that will teach you how to set defined boundaries. By creating boundaries and letting others know when they cross those boundaries you will become free from the emotional stress created by dealing with difficult people. Assertiveness training can also help with stressful family relationships as well.
Some other ideas to help relieve stress on the job are simple things such as taking scheduled breaks, having a clean and pleasant work area, and having a definite starting and ending time to your day. Giving yourself time for a break helps you to regroup and return to your work with a fresh outlook. A simple 15 minute break can do wonders for your productivity. Plus, if your work area is an area you like to be, the quality of your work will increase. It is amazing how little changes like these can decrease your work related stress.
You can deal with stress by developing a positive attitude. Keep in mind that no one has a perfect life and that difficult situations happen to everyone. If you have the attitude that this too shall pass, you are freeing yourself from unnecessary anxiety and worry. We all have problems to deal with, but we can learn to overcome rather than let the problems overcome us.
Stress is a part of the busy lives we live and we will never be free of it. But by learning to change our thinking from negative to positive, becoming more assertive, practice time management skills and looking for the good we will see that life is good. You can reduce your stress and discover the peace and contentment you want.
This article was written by Jamie Rona. Jamie is a mother of three who enjoys fitness and the outdoors. She loves to make fun treat for her kids with her milkshake maker. Check out her new website, www.milkshakemaker.org to learn all about getting the best milkshake maker so you can make great homemade milkshakes too!
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