Neal Owens

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Seasonal Depression, SAD, Winter Blues, Light Therapy Expert

Neal Owens Quick Facts

Main Areas: Seasonal Depression, SAD, Winter Blues, Light Therapy
Career Focus: Author, Speaker, Inventor, Business Owner
Affiliation: BBB, SLTBR.ORG, CLA.ORG, NOSAD

Neal Owens, a SAD sufferer himself, invented light therapy - a powerful treatment for Winter Blues. After conquering his own Winter Blues, Neal became committed to helping others by making the same light therapy available to the public. Owens invention called SunBoxes are used in over 450 clinical centers around the world. Owens an expert on Winter Blues, SAD, Seasonal Depression, is available to share his own personal experiences with you. In addition, he will be pleased to describe and demonstrate some of his fascinating light devices: light boxes, head-mounted light visors, and electronic dawn simulators, all of which have been shown by researchers to offer quick relief to Winter Blues sufferers.

Favorite Quotes & Thoughts from Neal Owens

Are you feeling run down, tired, lethargic, not interested in seeing anyone or doing anything? It could be a case of the holiday blues, which occurs when a person is lonely, without family or friends, or comes from a dysfunctional family where the holidays have unpleasant associations. It lasts for the few weeks of the holiday season itself.

On the other hand, if the blues last for months, chances are it isn’t the holiday blues, but a medical condition known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Neal Owens, a SAD sufferer, knows these symptoms well. “For years,” he says, “I didn’t enjoy the holidays. I’d lose my energy, I couldn’t get out of bed in the morning, and I’d crave junk food and gain weight during the winter.”

The winter solstice occurring on December 21 marks the season when an estimated 35 million Americans suffer from a loss of energy, enthusiasm, appetite control, sex drive and, in severe cases, depression. Seasonal Affective Disorder is caused by a change in brain chemistry produced by the short daylight hours of winter. SAD occurs in higher incidence in the northern latitudes, where the days are shorter and darker. Gloomy weather and stress make SAD worse.

Getting Started With Neal Owens

The good news about SAD is that it is highly treatable, and that the first-line treatment - bright light treatment - is non-invasive and doesn’t require taking medication. Bright light treatment using specially designed bright lights, called SunBoxes, is over 85% effective for SAD patients. Owens began producing and selling SunBoxes in 1985 to provide the products to other SAD sufferers, and in doing so, created an entirely new industry within the lighting business.

SunBoxes expose users to light levels 10-20 times brighter than regular indoor lighting for brief periods – usually only 15-30 minutes – each day. “Sitting in front of my SunBox for 20 minutes a day makes a world of difference for me – the difference between being miserable all winter or having a joyful season,” says Owens.