Every so often, a patient shares an observation that reminds me how small environmental changes can have a profound impact on mental health.
Recently, one of my patients with Bipolar I disorder told me about his experience using a smart lamp—the Philips Hue Twilight—which mimics natural sunrise and sunset light. He wasn’t expecting much when he bought it. What he noticed, though, was remarkable.
He had been camping months earlier and found himself feeling naturally sleepy at 9 p.m. as the light faded—something that hadn’t happened in years. That simple experience made him realize how tightly our bodies are connected to light. After returning home, he decided to try recreating that natural rhythm indoors.
The lamp he chose gradually dims over 20–30 minutes at bedtime and brightens in the morning, imitating dawn. Since using it, he’s noticed a shift:
Bedtime between 9–10 p.m.
Waking up around 8–9 a.m., refreshed and alert.
Before this, he often couldn’t fall asleep until after midnight and would sleep until late morning, often waking up groggy. Nothing else in his medication or lifestyle had changed—just the lighting.
He describes the effect as subtle but steady. It hasn’t fully recreated the natural fatigue he felt while camping, but it’s helped his sleep fall into a more consistent rhythm. The appeal, he says, is not only the soft fading light but also the automation and control—he can schedule the exact times his “sunset” and “sunrise” occur, all from his phone.
As a psychiatrist, I find this fascinating. We’ve long known that light is one of the most powerful external cues for our circadian system, and that circadian stability is closely tied to mood stability in bipolar disorder. This is why I often emphasize regular sleep patterns and morning light exposure as part of long-term maintenance.
What struck me most is that this wasn’t a treatment prescribed in a clinic—it was an experiment driven by curiosity. It’s a reminder that the way we design our environments can either fight or support our biology.
While not everyone will want—or need—to invest in a $300 smart lamp, the underlying idea is universal: paying attention to light exposure, particularly in the evening and morning, can make a real difference in how we sleep and how we feel.
Sometimes, the simplest insights come not from new medications, but from rediscovering something ancient—the sun’s quiet power to guide our internal clock.