How to Boost Your Mood: Sit by a Sunny Window

[ysabetwordsmith]

In a conversation with friends, dialecticdreamer recommended sitting by a sunny window as a way of lifting your mood.


This is a great recommendation for depression in general, or seasonal affective disorder in particular, and I've never seen it mentioned specifically. Reading corners are almost always in a quiet dim part of the house with a lamp. Full-spectrum lightboards are recommended but expensive. Going out is harrrrd, and much worse if people throw themselves at you.  For generally healthy people, it's a good way to maintain that health.  Sunny window = win.

This is something almost everyone could do, because most residences have at least one window that catches sunbeams at least part of the day. Sunlight helps the brain to wake up. Looking outside encourages interest without risk. Nature views improve mood. If setting up a seat by a sunny window seems like too much work, and you have people who are always asking what they can do to help you, consider inviting one of them to set it up.

And why has nobody ever recommended a sunroom or sunporch for persistent low mood or energy? Sure they're expensive, but so are lots of other medical treatments. Huh, maybe because that wouldn't go through a pharmacy and thus would make no money for the medical industry. I could just see some construction companies in Terramagne America putting up a display on the mood-boosting effects of sunlight beside their display of glass panels. :D

Sunny window seats are very popular in Terramagne.  They're a lot smaller than a quiet room, so they're quicker and easier to make, and more people have space for them.


So let's explore some simple and more complex ways of getting indoor sun ...

Consider a chair in a cheerful color. Putting a chair by a sunny window is a one-step project. Done!

Hang some prisms in the window to make rainbows. This prismatic table serves a similar purpose. If your view sucks, you can cover the whole window with prismatic film.  Shiny.

Add a plant for living energy and a textured afghan for tactile stimulation. The cream chair in that picture matches a more natural-toned decor.  Houseplants improve mood, especially in winter.

Put a birdfeeding station or birdhouse outside the window to attract motion.  This cozy reading corner has a birdfeeder outside and a book table inside.  Watching birds has mood-boosting effects too.

An open porch or a balcony makes a good place for birdfeeders too.

If you prefer cats, you could create a feral cat station with food, water, and shelter.  Watching cat videos is uplifting and energizing, so watching them through a window should also work.

For an enclosed porch, consider putting a desk by a window so you can get some sun while you work or relax on the computer.

If you have a sunroom, you can fill it with as many plants as you want.

Comments

Re: you can find lights

[siliconshaman]

I know! I live with a wife and daughter, both of whom have hearing that puts bats to shame! They can hear MOSFET chips working... aka tiny, tiny sounds in the Ghz range.

Re: you can find lights

[ysabetwordsmith]

I don't know anything with MOFSET chips.

I can hear fluorescent lights, bats, and owls other than barn owls. I could not hear a barn owl swooping six inches above my head during a show, and that freaked me out. I can hear if my computer is on. One time I tried an online hearing test, and I could hear something at ever level ... except it claimed the last level had no sound. I hypothesize that I heard my computer speaker activating.

I can hear somewhat of elephants talking, which extends into the subsonic range, but I think I'm only getting an extra layer or two beyond what humans typically hear.

Re: you can find lights

[siliconshaman]

That tiny sound you hear with a CF light bulb, that's a MOSFET chip, they're the power transformers. ordinary Fluorescent tubes it's probably the coil in the choke you can hear humming, and computer speaker would produce a tiny amount of 50 or 60hz sound from mains induction.

But yeah, Barn owls produce sound at <0.5 db... a whisper is around 15db. The original stealth fighters.

Re: you can find lights

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> That tiny sound you hear with a CF light bulb, that's a MOSFET chip, they're the power transformers.<<

Ah, okay. I can hear that.

>> ordinary Fluorescent tubes it's probably the coil in the choke you can hear humming, and computer speaker would produce a tiny amount of 50 or 60hz sound from mains induction.<<

Computers make all kinds of sounds for me. Hum, buzz, whir, fan, etc. Most distinctive is a very high whine that a majority of electronics emit. Some machines are quiet, others quite loud. I can't go into an electronics department in a store if they have a lot of machines on, the racket from the whine gives me a headache almost immediately.

>>But yeah, Barn owls produce sound at <0.5 db... a whisper is around 15db. The original stealth fighters.<<

I was surprised because to me great-horned owls are loud, and I've been able to hear others. But not barn owls. They're like ghosts. O_O I still like them. They're just a little creepy.

Re: you can find lights

[zeeth_kyrah]

Can't be hearing in the GHz, it's probably a sympathetic resonance. Still, I grew up able to tell when a CRT was on because I could hear it.