Hello Brigid
My daughter too has SAD, and the light visor from outside-in has been a
veritable life saver. They allow u to try it out, and will also discount items
that have been returned as unsuitable. In the winter she uses it at breakfast
time for 20 minutes, and in the evening may sometimes do a little top-up before
going out (teenagers seem to have day time and night time diaries!) but people
can be very sensitive to light input and the instructions should be followed assiduously.
Purchase of these can be VAT free if they are to be used for medical purposes,
but I cannot remember whether you need a GP or consultant letter… Outside
in provide excellent service too; when there has been a problem they have sent
me a temporary replacement whilst I am returning our home one for repair.
In the summer months she can make early mornings but in terms of
studying ….dark mornings and dark evenings are very difficult. So to
support students it is always helpful to have online access to notes/lectures
etc where they might have missed sessions. Try to avoid timetabling practical
stuff too early in the mornings. Provide light boxes/lamps in study carrols
(have I spelled it right)and recommend that the student uses those on their
desks. There also light clocks, which wake you gently in the morning by
providing an increasing glow, and also help you sleep by providing a dimming
light- I am aware they can be helpful but not a substitute for the
lightboxes/visors, and the research is not as robust. My knowledge of physics
is not good enough to have understood about the use of Day Light bulbs and the
light measurements in Lux, but I am sure there are folk who understand that,
and hopefully one day all our institutions and offices will have have lighting
that both suits our eyes and neurological needs!
I would suggest talking the student through a typical winters day,
from am-pm and see if they can pinpoint their difficulties, and then say what
might help them. It’s also worth finding out whether it get’s worse
across the season, or the lightbox keeps their energy even. Also the student
might suffer some level of depression and their immune system may not function
so well.
Much of the research has been based in scandinavia, for obvious reasons.
A medical referral to a specialist is worth a shot, some prescribe
melatonin, which is only available on prescription in the
There is also an organisation http://www.sada.org.uk/,
altho the info on there does not seem completely up-to date.
Hope this is helpful
Naomi – Ed Psych
From:
Caroline Davies [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 01 May 2007 14:54
Subject: Re: Seasonal Affective
Disorder
When I was looking into this a little while ago for my daughter I came
across the following company http://www.outsidein.co.uk/index.htm who
supply a range of light therapy products for SAD. The good thing is that
you can try them out before you have to buy. They sell something called a
light visor which you can walk around wearing. I imagine this acts as a
sort of top up during the day. There is a phone number on their web site,
presumably for advice. Hope this helps - its not a recommendation though!
Caroline