I wanted to highlight something fairly simple again this #MentalHealthMonday, so I thought I’d choose light. I think I’ve mentioned here before that light is one of my personal methods of combating the early darkness of winter in the Midwest. And I’m not even talking about light therapy boxes or SAD lamps, which have honestly never worked that well for me, for some reason. Just having some pretty, unique lights lit around my apartment, or some candles, definitely brings about a noticeable lift in my mood.
The lights make things feel cozy and warm, and make “nesting” seem like not such a bad idea, especially if it’s nasty outside. I think for every room in my house where I had a more traditional light, I’ve eventually gone through and replaced it with either a softer bulb, or a more diffused and/or colored shade. Here are two examples: the Mason-jar light fixture in my kitchen and one of the jewels of my collection, my Majestic midcentury modern lamp in my living room. It helps that I am an estate sale and vintage flea market junkie! But really what these lights help do, I think, is create a more comfortable environment to relax in, so any time you spend indoors really does feel warm and enjoyable. At least in my situation, it’s not exactly a magic switch, but it does shift my brain gears a little from “oh no, I’ve got to spend a lonely night in with my brain torturing me” to “what a nice space, I think I’ll catch up with my reading/movie watching/cat videos.”
I guess by now we are all mostly used to light as a symbol of festivity during the winter, and one of the bright spots is beginning to see them pop up in the windows of stores and homes. I had to laugh when, just as I was thinking of writing this very post later in the day, I saw my work building had installed these light structures in the lobby as I came in. And you know what? It really did make me feel a little more cheery!
Mental Filmness 