last updated 3/22/2024
When your body’s clocks for sleep and activity are not strongly setting your daily rhythms, it’s easy to become depressed (or less often, hypomanic/manic).
Fortunately, it works the other way too: you can strengthen your body clocks by having a daily rhythms of sleep and activity. You see? Having regular sleep hours is a mood stabilizer, just like lamotrigine and other pills.
But for some people, getting to bed at a regular time is difficult. Getting up at a regular time, even more so? If you can do this on your own, fine. If you need help, the good news is: you can train your body to make these important steps easier.
There are some tricks, like using a “dawn simulator” to help make getting up easier. And using blue-blocking glasses to create “artificial darkness” an hour or two before bedtime. `
Here’s a step-by-step video of the whole process.
Or you can use a workbook that will help you make changes. This workbook actually goes much farther, helping you set other daily rhythms, not just sleep. The whole program is called Social Rhythm Therapy.