If Darkness Is So Stressful

[Bodhi]

If darkness is so stressful .....

Why do i feel sooo much better in the evenings/nighttime?

 

[Kyle M]

Good question, I'm also a night person.

 

[thyrulian]

I remember when I had first developed anhedonia, how much I would dread the sun going down. I used to be able to absorb the sentimental value from a rainy day. About impossible these days.

A fortified perspective can grasp the good/comfort in most any environmental scenario.

 

[jyb]

If darkness is so stressful .....

Why do i feel sooo much better in the evenings/nighttime?

Technically you weren't exposed to darkness for long by evening. Do you feel good in the early morning?

 

[Brian]

If darkness is so stressful .....

Why do i feel sooo much better in the evenings/nighttime?

I think it might be because cortisol should be at its lowest around 9 PM when circadian rhythm is good. I'm not sure why the body does that though. Is it some kind of evolved mechanism for diurnal animals to make sure they can settle down and fall asleep?

When my baseline cortisol is low (from a good metabolism/youth hormone levels, adequate food, and daylight sun exposure), the evening drop in cortisol after the sun goes down makes me very relaxed, warm and want to go to sleep immediately.

 

[BobbyDukes]

Not sure how you guys are perceiving that. True, my body is warmer, and my cortisol feels lower in the evening, but I absolutely detest the darkness. It really lowers my mood in winter time (where there is way more of it). As soon as I switch my heat lamps on, and that stunning light hits my retina, my mood lifts immediately. For me, it's a no brainer.

Go into a supermarket late at night, and watch the night workers go about their jobs. Do they look happy, in their element + having the time of their lives? In that artificial light? They look tired + run down (zombies). People look like crap when the sun disappears, and there's a reason for that.

Ray Peat, right again, IMO.

You think you feel better in the evenings because you've been eating all day, and your blood sugar is way better off than first thing in the morning where you basically awake from a fast (which is also a stress, along with the darkness). Night time is just one big nasty experience for the body. You gotta do what works to soldier through it. I'm no expert, doe.

 

[Brian]

Not sure how you guys are perceiving that. True, my body is warmer, and my cortisol feels lower in the evening, but I absolutely detest the darkness. It really lowers my mood in winter time (where there is way more of it). As soon as I switch my heat lamps on, and that stunning light hits my retina, my mood lifts immediately. For me, it's a no brainer.

Go into a supermarket late at night, and watch the night workers go about their jobs. Do they look happy, in their element + having the time of their lives? In that artificial light? They look tired + run down (zombies). People look like crap when the sun disappears, and there's a reason for that.

Ray Peat, right again, IMO.

You think you feel better in the evenings because you've been eating all day, and your blood sugar is way better off than first thing in the morning where you basically awake from a fast (which is also a stress, along with the darkness). Night time is just one big nasty experience for the body. You gotta do what works to soldier through it. I'm no expert, doe.

Well maybe that's why the cortisol rhythm evolved to nudge you into sleep after the sun goes down, because the metabolic state of sleep is the best protection against the stress of darkness. If I don't wind down and let myself fall asleep by 11 PM or so, I can feel my stress starting to rise.

 

[raypeatclips]

I have wondered this as well, as I am most creative between the hours of 11pm-1.30am I have found. I always attributed this to being a negative however, thought my stress hormones were rising around this time and prompting me into action.

 

[Regina]

Good question, I'm also a night person.

Me too

 

[michael94]

Same! And my favorite weather is a snowy winter.

 

[lollipop]

A fortified perspective can grasp the good/comfort in most any environmental scenario.

This. Has been my experience.

 

[tomisonbottom]

It might be because your blood sugar is lower in the morning and the beginning of the day, whereas by the end of the day you've got a couple thousand calories in you

 

[Regina]

Same! And my favorite weather is a snowy winter.

And I sleep upside-down in the basement hanging from a rafter.

 

[lollipop]

And I sleep upside-down in the basement hanging from a rafter.

 

[Constatine]

Dopamine increases at night and inhibitions (as well as some logical processing) begin to tire and shut down. This creates a state of near drunkenness.

 

[Regina]

Dopamine increases at night and inhibitions (as well as some logical processing) begin to tire and shut down. This creates a state of near drunkenness.

I used to compose like a madman (woman) in the window around 2 - 5 am.

 

[MyUsernameHere]

TSH (and thyroid hormones) rise during the night.

http://www.reboundhealth.com/cms/im...yronine has a distinct circadian id 18123.pdf

 

[Bodhi]

Technically you weren't exposed to darkness for long by evening. Do you feel good in the early morning?

I feel like ***t in the mornings...

What do you mean with exposure?

Evenings till late in the night i feel sharp, clear, warm, relaxed and focused....

 

[Bodhi]

Ray states that darkness = stress so cortisol rises in the night right?

 

[Bodhi]

TSH (and thyroid hormones) rise during the night.

http://www.reboundhealth.com/cms/images/pdf/MedicalAbstract/free triiodothyronine has a distinct circadian id 18123.pdf

How can TSH rise both with Thyroid hormones?

Low TSH supposed to indicate high Thyroid hormones