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Since having thyroid and adrenal problems, I’ve found mornings to be the hardest time of day by far. They’re indescribably difficult, although they never used to be, pre-chronic illness days.
I was one of those weird people who woke up early on weekends and jumped out of bed with energy. I could get going early in the morning without much of an issue, but these days, I wake up feeling low in mood, groggy, foggy-headed, nauseas and generally just bleh.
So for a while now, I’ve wanted to try a ‘wake-up lamp‘ to see if it helps with this. “What the heck is a wake-up lamp?” you ask. Well…
What is a Wake-Up Lamp?
A wake-up lamp is an alarm clock with an inbuilt lamp that is designed to slowly wake you up in the morning. You set the alarm (so for me, 6:30am) and at 6am, the lamp begins brightening up the room so that by 6:30 when the alarm goes off, you’ve been woken up gently, as the lamp has mimicked a natural sunrise. The idea is that you’ll already be well on your way out of REM sleep by the time your alarm goes off and be more awake and alert.
I Tried a Wake-Up Lamp
So I ordered one on Amazon, that had a decent number of reviews, all positive about the effect it’s had on them waking up more gently and less groggy in the mornings and sat waiting excitedly. I’d give anything to be able to function properly before midday. By the time I’m able to do anything, half my day has already gone.
I was excited to set it up and give it a go as soon as it arrived.
How was I feeling the next morning?
Well, as soon as the lamp began coming on at 6am, on it’s very low light setting, I was woken up and from then until half six, I dozed whilst the room got brighter. So it wasn’t an ideal reaction, but I am a super light sleeper. It resulted in me getting half an hour’s less sleep and dozing is never a good thing for me to do. It makes me feel so groggy.
I also found that throughout the night when I was waking up and tossing and turning (I’m very restless and don’t sleep through the night at all) I kept looking at the time on the clock, out of some weird new habit. I was doing it without thinking, probably as the time was lit up to the side of me, in a dark room, so I was drawn to it every time my eyes opened.
So for me, the wake-up lamp didn’t really work, but I would still recommend that others give it a go.
Struggling With Mornings
If you struggle like I do in the mornings, especially if it’s gotten worse over time, do check if you’ve got something else at play besides your thyroid condition. Adrenal issues are extremely common in thyroid patients and can cause a whole load of sleep disruptions.
Optimal thyroid levels should also be in place (not just ‘in range‘) and with winter comes increased chances of vitamin deficiencies. Check you’re optimal in B12, D, iron, Ferritin etc. which can all cause heavy fatigue and low mood.
Have you tried a wake-up lamp? How did you find it?
Related article: How To Create a Good Morning Routine as a Thyroid Patient
You can click on the hyperlinks in the above post to learn more and see references to information given.
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