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    Home » Nutrition

    How To Make Your Own Happy Lamp for Light Therapy

    By Catherine on July 13, 2013 Last Updated January 17, 2018 11 Comments | No Medical Advice | This Post Contains Affiliate Links

    DIY Happy Lamp for Light Therapy (under $20) | Butter Nutrition
    If you didn't already know, I live in Seattle which becomes pretty dark and gloomy for about 70% of the year. That means the winters can be pretty dark, with very limited sun exposure, unless I go on vacation. Bright light on your skin signals your cells to create MORE energy via your thyroid gland and bright light is also a conversion promoter of hormone synthesis. These are in part the reasons why people tend to feel more sluggish, have lower energy production, and experience Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) during the dark months of the year.

    "Darkness suppresses mitochondrial function, and light activates it."  – Dr. Ray Peat

    Here’s how you can create your own happy light for light therapy in your home or office during the winter. If you find these at your local hardware store they should cost you under $20, and a bit more online with shipping. I even added a programmable light switch so that my bright light wakes me up in the morning instead of an alarm clock.

    How to make your own happy light:

    • 250 watt incandescent bulb or heat lamp (like this)
    • Brooder clamp light with porcelain ceramic socket (like this)

    Optional:

    • Programmable switch (like this)
    • Combination wallplate to go with the new switch (like this)

    That's all you need! Find a good place to mount the light in your home or office, and incorporate it into your daily routine.
    Note:
    This isn't a light you want to look into directly, but instead expose to your skin for at least 15-20 minutes a day from a safe distance to get the benefits during those dark winter months.

    Non-DYI option:

    If you don't want to make your own, you can pick up something (like this) to use in your home or office.

    Do your energy levels drop in the winter and rise in the summer? Please share in the comments!

    PIN IT:
    DIY Happy Lamp for Light Therapy (under $20) | Butter Nutrition

    Resources:
    Stem cells, cell culture, and culture: Issues in regeneration by Ray Peat
    Light Therapy: Amp Up Your Life! by Josh Rubin

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    About Catherine

    Hi there! I’m Catherine Crow. Seattle-based Functional Nutritional Therapy Practitioner (FNTP), Educator, Diet Investigator, and Coconut Milk Ice Cream Enthusiast. My goal is to help guide you to improve your nutrition through strategic eating (not dieting) and without expensive supplements. Because when you know better, you can feel better! Read more...

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    Affiliate Link Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. Please note: using an affiliate link does not change the price of the product, instead the seller pays Butter Nutrition a small commission. My thoughts on these products are my own.

    Paid Endorsement Disclosure: In order for me to support my blogging activities, I may receive monetary compensation or other types of remuneration for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

    Reader Interactions

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    1. Kristi Cooke

      July 24, 2013 at 12:05 pm

      Just curious - a 250 watt incandescent bulb or heat lamp is all you need to do this? I thought I had read somewhere that there was a special kind of bulb used to produce the light. Amazing! I am a nutritional therapist, too, certified from NTA. Where did you receive your training?
      Thanks!

      Reply
      • Catherine

        July 31, 2013 at 5:55 pm

        According to the work of Ray Peat-- yes, this is all you need! He's got plenty of articles online about it for further reading. My education is through NTA as well, along with about 10 years of personal study and research.

        Thanks for reading!
        Catherine

        Reply
    2. Sarah

      September 04, 2013 at 6:05 pm

      I get anxiety attacks BAD during the winter months, do you think this would help me? And how far away is a "safe distance" from the light? Thanks!

      Reply
      • killyou@telus.net

        December 05, 2014 at 10:18 pm

        magnesium supplements (with k2 and d3) would likely stop your anxiety attacks.

        Reply
    3. Marci

      September 04, 2013 at 7:07 pm

      Wow, I have heat lamps all over the property to kept animal/pet water dishes from freezing in the winter and even to use in a homemade incubator! Never ONCE thought of using one as a Happy Lamp! This is GREAT to know, but wouldn't it get a bit HOT? Sometimes I have put regular sized 'grow lamp' bulbs in them, the full light spectrum kind you get for plants and I bet that would be just as good but without the heat. Of course, in winter the heat might be nice, eh?

      Reply
    4. Sarah

      September 05, 2013 at 6:06 pm

      I get anxiety attacks BAD in the winter, do you think this would help me? Also, how far away is a "safe distance" from the light?

      Reply
    5. Marilyn

      November 05, 2013 at 10:36 am

      Full spectrum light is supposed to be better for this type of thing according to everything I have read. I am assuming any light will help though.

      Reply
    6. Geraldine

      July 04, 2014 at 3:31 pm

      Hi Catherine
      Is this totally different to infrared light therapy? If so how are they different?

      I've been reading up in the benefits and see you can buy home devices but wanted to do my research first - so by any chance if you have any information on infrared red therapy I'd appreciate it
      Thanks so much

      Reply
      • Colin

        December 05, 2014 at 4:13 pm

        The 'heat' that comes off the bulb is infrared. You can't see infrared but you can feel it. 🙂 Hope that clarifies things for you.

        Reply
    7. Anabel

      December 06, 2014 at 3:36 am

      So helpful, thanks!

      Reply
    8. fairlight

      December 25, 2017 at 11:39 pm

      Do the 250 watt, 130 volt clear incandescent bulbs provide both red and infrared light? It seemed like folk were saying the bulbs needed to be tinted red in order to get the red light therapy? Thank you.

      Reply

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