I had a customer call today who is VERY sensitive to light.  She purchased the Trav-Elite and has been using it for a few days.  She feels that her eyesight is blurry and disturbed.  I suggested that she start out much more slowly than the suggested  first session of 15 minutes.  She is going to wait until her issues with her eyes abate and then try the light for just 1-2 minutes.  If her eyes still feel great, she will do that for several days and very gradually increase her time in front of the light.

Some people are extra sensitive to light.  The Trav-Elite seems to be a really great fit for these people.  It is important to remember that for someone who does not get much natural sunlight and/or wears very dark sunglasses whenever they are outdoors, light therapy will be very bright.  Some people actually feel slightly nauseous.  This is a clue that they will need to start out very slowly and reprogram their bodies to take in the very bright light which it is craving, but without the side effects.  It just takes a little extra patience.  The long term benefits will far outweigh the slower start!

This has been a strange summer in the weather department here in Minnesota.  I wondered how this cool summer was affecting people in other areas of the country.  I just got a great article about just that…

“Some doctors say more than 20 percent of people in New England suffer from S.A.D.–seasonal affective disorder.”

http://www1.whdh.com/features/articles/healthcast/BO117991/

The interesting thing is that Seasonal Depression used to mean Winter Depression for many.  New studies are finding that the depression is based less on the season, and more on the sunlight.  What about summertime seasonal depression?

http://wcco.com/health/summertime.sad.seasonal.2.1061049.html

On a very serious note, if you are worried about someone’s level of depression, make sure to keep watch and seek professional help even in the summer months.  It turns out that the suicide rate is higher in the summer months.

http://blogs.pe.com/news/digest/2009/07/ucr-research-shows-suicides-hi-1.html

Just in time for summer, we have added a tanning light to our product line.  This portable tanning light is only 18×10x6.5 and weighs only 18 lbs.  It has a larger coverage area than regular sunlamps and doesn’t have the harmful UV-B rays that burn skin.  It tans with UV-A rays so you can look great all year long.  Check it out:  http://store.lighttherapyproducts.com/index.php/skin-lights/table-top-tanning-light-ht-420.html¼/p>

Now that spring is arriving, our light box sales usually quiet down in the states and they start to pick up in countries south of the equator.  Those in the contiguous US can still find great products at Light Therapy Products during the summer months.   Read these comments from E-Bay buyers about our high quality Compact Fluorescent (cf) light bulbs: 

Wonderful lights! Full spectrum! I saved a fortune!

Wow, better than described. Thank you!

Got here within a few days, Great lights

VERY impressive seller-fast ship & when one of bulbs defective, immediate refund

Really good product. Fast and easy transaction.

Quick shipment. Item as advertised. Highly recommended!

Excellent Transaction. Great Seller, helpful and patient. Thanks!!!!!

Just what an eBay seller should be - fantastic AAAA++++

by far the best ebay experience I have had. Outstanding customer service

 Our bulbs are high quality bright white and full spectrum.  As you can see, we have had great feedback from our E Bay customers!  We offer bulbs in wattages from 13-40 watts and flood lights in 15, 20 and 30 watts. We also offer 4 foot overhead tube lights in the same great quality.   Are you stuck in a depressing interior office?  Try our great full spectrum cf bulbs, overhead tube bulbs, and desk lamps which can double as a light box when you need one!  Ease eye fatigue, bring great quality light to your work area, and feel productive and alert. We also have beautiful salt rock lamps in many unique shapes, and as always, we have a wonderful selection of dawn simulator alarm clocks.  Wake with fantastic sunshine each and every morning and start your day off with a smile!

We thought that I would pass along an email from a customer who recently purchased a Soleil Sun Alarm and a Sad Elite light box.

I thought I’d take a minute to let you know that I am enjoying my dawn simulator clock.  I wish I had bought it earlier to help me through the winter but I got it just in time for the shift to Daylight Saving time and that was helpful.  I’m sure it will be great in the winter!  I never imagined how much light therapy could affect my life.  I am truly a believer in what these products can do!  I am excited that it works as well as it does because I wasn’t sure what to expect.  I am 100% convinced that light therapy can improve the quality of your life if you have SAD.  Thank you so much for the support and assistance that you website provides.  Karla

I recently wrote a bit about how crazy the Minnesota spring can be.  I hate to say that I told you so.    It was 60 and sunny over the weekend and Monday it was cold, windy and rainy.  I expected the rain to turn to snow at any moment.  Today I made sure that I had both a snow brush and an umbrella in my car.

I find with this unpredictable weather that use of my Sun Up dawn simulator and my Sun Touch Plus light box more important than ever.  No matter what the wacky weather, every morning I wake up to  and start my morning off with beautiful sunshine!  It sets a great tone and I can see that spring is coming, a bit more slowly than most of us would like, but it IS coming.  I have been noticing that the birds are singing longer songs, and I am seeing some feathered friends that have wintered elsewhere.

Start every day of with the warm glow of sunshine, even if it’s only inside your 4 walls!¼/p>

Is it just me or is this weather-time thing crazy!?

Ok, so last week when I got up at 5:30 the sun would wake up not long after.  The birdsong was longer and happier and the weather had me thinking of spring and digging in the dirt!  Hello, winter is back with a vengance.  Yesterday the rain started midday and then changed to snow about 5pm.  The wind picked up and our evening walk provided an invigorating sleet facial!  It was cloudy and windy all day.  This morning I woke up to 0 degrees and wind.

Let me tell you, thank goodness for my Sun Up dawn simulator and my Sun Touch Plus.  Eventhough the time change has my body clock all screwed up, my dawn simulator and light box are helping me to quickly reprogram it.  Sitting in front of my Sun Touch Plus bathes me in glorious sunshine that lasts the whole day long.  No matter the weather or light outside, I am creating my own Spring inside.  Now all I need is some great birdsong music and I’ll be set!¼/p>

Check out this great feedback from a customer who recently bought a Sun Touch Plus:

My physician husband and I are daily using our light therapy machine.        He is , in fact, referring his patients to Light Therapy Products  when appropriate.        We use it each morning with coffee and the newspapers.        The major change has been that after a few weeks, I no longer require an afternoon nap—–        and I was a     daily  napper!        We are so very happy and comfortable with our newfound “morning glow” that I wanted to log        our experience.      Mary, Minneapolis

We got some great feedback this week!  This is probably one of the most common comments that we receive:

“Sarah…

I’m not sure its psychological or physical but I love the light I bought.   While I wasn’t diagnosed with SAD…I feel better to sit under the light for 30 minutes in the morning.  

Thank you

Phillip”

Phillip bought the Flamingo.  Many of our customers don’t have any diagnosis, but relate with many of the symptoms described as those of S.A.D.  We’re so happy that Phillip and others find relief and benefits from our lights!

I think that most people tend to think that they can endure winter, darkness, cold and depression if they just tough it out.  Here’s a great new thought pattern:  It doesn’t have to be hard!  I wake up with my Sun Up dawn simulator every day and use my Sun touch Plus light box every morning either while meditating or exercising.  It starts my day off with a beautiful sunrise and a sun-filled morning.  I personally feel like I need the help, and here’s the kicker:  I don’t have to suffer through the darkness, and my health and well being are worth every penny that the items cost me. 

I also use my Sun Up dawn simulator every day, spring, summer, fall and winter.  Here in Minnesota we have dark wet springs every year.  We need to get through the cold and dark of winter through March and then get through the rainy months of April and May.   Waking up to sunshine every morning changes my day for the better.  I also use my Sun Touch Plus on rainy days to completely change my outlook.  It feels so wonderful to be in charge of weather if only in my 4 walls!¼/p>