Here in sunny LA, we have the distinct privilege of being able to go outside in short sleeves most seasons of the year. Because of this, many Angelenos have never heard of a lovely little affliction called Seasonal Affective Disorder, or SAD. SAD happens when the days get shorter and the sun gets covered by clouds. The diminished light levels affect how much serotonin and melatonin the body makes, which in turn affects how much the body sleeps. As the sleep cycle gets disrupted, moods change as well, tending towards the negative.
As you can see, this isn’t a simple case of our emotional associations with light and darkness; physiology is involved. You can love hanging out in the dark all you want and it will still have the potential to plunge you into a deep depression. There is actually a theory that the near-universal use of light to celebrate the season nearest the winter solstice (the shortest day of the year) is an active effort to get everyone through the dark intact. In pre-pandemic LA, the vast majority of us could count on getting sufficient sunlight without even thinking about it. Driving to work would admit enough of it through the windshield for that purpose. Most of the time, we work harder to get away from the effects of too much sun, such as ridiculous heat, sunburn, melanoma, and dehydration. Because of this, most Angelenos are not programmed with light-seeking survival skills. Many of us are spending more time indoors than usual, and some of us may even be able to conduct the business of life without leaving the house for days. While keeping your germs to yourself is great for public health, it’s not great for your personal health to stay inside all the time. Even medieval Europeans, who were physiologically adapted to shorter, darker days, still had to go outside to get water, to chop firewood, and to do other necessary tasks--even in the snow. Even with all their outdoor time, they’re the ones who are historically responsible for putting Christmas near the solstice as an excuse to light more candles and build more fires. Unless you have the most amazingly huge windows in your house and you keep them unshaded, you need to go outside at least once a day--especially if you are of a darker complexion. The good news for those who are rightfully concerned about public health is that the virus does not transmit easily outside, where it can dissipate in every direction. Indoors, it gets trapped in the room and does not dissipate for about 3 hours. This means that if you take a walk outside and happen to pass people, you’re far less likely to exchange germs with them than you would even in the supermarket. If you or a family member are in total quarantine for one reason or another, there are still ways of boosting your light intake. Open all the windows as often as you can, and light candles if it’s allowed where you are. If you can afford it, there are a number of companies that actually make special lamps designed to mimic the broad-spectrum properties of real sunlight. I received one as a gift at the start of my time in Michigan, and it definitely helped me get through the winter. To get more light in a fun way, put up every Christmas light you’ve got and don’t take them down again until a little bit before the Super Bowl, the American landmark of when it is truly no longer socially acceptable to have Christmas lights up. If your Christmas lights aren’t too obviously Christmas-y, go ahead and keep them up through Valentine’s Day; you and your spouse could probably use something resembling a romantic atmosphere in a world that will probably still not include in-person indoor restaurant dining just yet. Neutral fairy lights can bring joy year round, and there’s no shame in using them during this pandemic. If your light sources are limited indoors, mirrors and other reflective surfaces can be great for boosting the power of what you do have. They also have the benefit of making your space look larger, which also helps combat the cabin fever of pandemic life. This, of course, brings me back to the importance of going outside every day if you can: even if all you do is step outside your front door for a minute, it reminds you that the four walls you live in do not encompass the entire world. Meanwhile, life goes on.
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AuthorJillian Lutes is the youth pastor at West Covina Hills Seventh-day Adventist Church. Archives
May 2020
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