Exposing your eyes to sunlight in the morning increases daytime energy & mood etc. & improves nighttime sleep, but it also triggers a cascade of short, medium & long-acting peptides & hormones that powerfully modify state of mind & body in other (positive) ways too. *Blink as needed of course; don’t harm your retina. Science can’t satisfactorily fix broken retinas yet…
And no, there is no true artificial replacement for sunlight that is as good, but if you can’t view sunlight in the morning then bright artificial light would be your next choice. And don’t forget that there is sunlight on cloudy days. It’s especially important to view that sunlight on cloudy days.
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Many people have trouble falling asleep or back asleep after waking in the middle of the night. NSDR (Non-Sleep-Deep-Rest) teaches you how to deliberately relax into sleep-states. It also can (partially) offset sleep deprivation (if done any time). (Links to 0 cost NSDRs below).
There is a very fast way to shift your sleep-wake schedule, whether for travel, becoming an early riser (or late riser) or accommodating shift work.
It starts with timing your light exposure correctly and knowing your temperature minimum — which is a time not a temperature, so you don’t need any technology to do this. Let me explain:
Your temperature minimum is your lowest body temperature in each 24-hour cycle. You don’t need to measure your body temperature to know it, as it occurs approximately two hours before your usual wake-up time.
The top Huberman Lab podcast episodes for the last year were: (links to each below).
David Goggins: Building Inner Strength
Esther Perel: Romantic Relationships
James Hollis: Your True Self, Building a Life
Oral Health
How to Study & Learn
Skin Health