# Like night and day:  Light glasses and dark therapy can treat non-24 (and SAD)

*Epistemic status:  n=1, strong, life changing results.*

TLDR:  Light glasses, in combination with turning all your lights red at night, and optionally melatonin, can treat non-24.  Light glasses can also be a competitive alternative to lumenators for SAD.  

My non-24 before this treatment:

![](https://39669.cdn.cke-cs.com/rQvD3VnunXZu34m86e5f/images/43e354528ef7f12456bccb8e7e997477cbcb5bc00551149f.png)

Data taken from my CPAP.  
Vertical lines are sleep periods; the x-axis is individual days, and the y-axis is the time in the day.  
Notice how my sleep keeps wrapping around every two weeks.

And after:

![](https://39669.cdn.cke-cs.com/rQvD3VnunXZu34m86e5f/images/e64d57984b75a88d20e6726037f60f2aead6aba495ec1ae5.png)

Like night and day.

What is non-24?
===============

Non-24 is "non-24-hour sleep disorder."  Healthy people's bodies tell them to go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day, i.e. every ~24 hours.  For people with non-24, however, these drift around, such that if you wake up at 8 am one day, you wake up at 9am the next day, then 10 am the next, and so on until you're waking up at midnight a couple weeks later.  This is akin to having a daily circadian rhythm length of 25 hours, compared to most people's ~24; hence "non-24."  This is a pretty awful problem to deal with, since either half the time you are in the middle of your day when everyone else is winding down or asleep, or you are sleep deprived!

+++ Aside:  How do sleep rhythms even work?

There's (at least) three rhythms:

"Process C" (for Circadian), the driver of wakefulness:  There is a little clock in your brain called the suprachiasmatic nucleus, which tracks how long your day/night cycle is and sends signals for you to be awake.  It takes the majority of its cues from [ipRGCs](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intrinsically_photosensitive_retinal_ganglion_cell), a type of cell in your eyes that controls pupillary reflex but contributes little to color vision.  Blue and green light activate them very strongly, and red light activates them almost not at all.

"Process S" (for Sleepiness), the driver of sleepiness:  This sends signals for you to go to sleep, based on the buildup of various metabolites in your brain.  They accumulate steadily over the day and are what causes active drowsiness (while the "sleep" signal of Process C is just the withdrawal of the wakefulness signal).  Antagonism of the receptors that check for those metabolites relieves this sleep pressure; this is how caffeine works, by blocking receptors for adenosine, one of the major metabolites.

There are also ultradian cycles, or ["basic rest-activity cycles](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basic_rest%E2%80%93activity_cycle)."  They vary between people, but are generally 80-120 minutes long.  During each one, there is a "sleep gate" of about 20 minutes, which is the best time to go to sleep.  If you miss it, it will be harder to go to sleep, and you will probably have to wait for the next one to come around.




+++

My history with non-24
----------------------

I have had non-24 for the last 10-15 years.  The length of most people's circadian rhythm is specifically around 24.2 hours.  As you can see in the chart at the beginning, it is more like 26 or 26.5 for me.  As you can imagine, this is generally incompatible with participating in normal human society.

Now, after implementing the protocol, I wake up and go to sleep within roughly the same 6 hour period every day, even in winter.  It's a miracle!

I think this began when I was a teenager.  At that age, most people naturally stay up later; however, some combination of genetics and constant electronics use probably led to delayed sleep phase disorder (DPSD), aka staying up very late, till 3 or 4 am in my case.  The constant sleep deprivation tanked my grades in high school, and I barely scraped through graduation.  This developed into full non-24 in my first year of college, and was a major contributing factor to me dropping out at the end of the year.

This pattern endured through two months of sleeping outdoors, trying college again, and several years of working a night shift job and living in a van.  It only started ending when I got the [Luminette 3s](https://www.amazon.com/New-Model-Luminette-Therapy-Glasses/dp/B07VMRRB9Y) in the winter of 2023, but I didn't fully commit until July 2025.  Within two weeks, after mandating for myself several hours of light glasses use during the day and total red light therapy after sunset, my non-24 was completely under control.

(See the addendum at the bottom for recent developments!)

The VLiDACMel protocol
======================

Almost everything in this post depends on insights from the VLiDACMel protocol.  [You can read it here.](https://circadiaware.github.io/VLiDACMel-entrainment-therapy-non24/SleepNon24VLiDACMel.html)

VLiDACMel is an informal protocol developed by Stephen Karl Larroque to treat his own non-24.  It successfully treated his and another person's, and is what I based my own treatment plan off of.  It stands for "**V**ery long **Li**ght therapy, **D**ark therapy, **A**void **C**arbohydrates when melatonin is high in the blood, and **Mel**atonin."  It is primarily intended for non-24, but touches on treatment for:

*   seasonal affective disorder (SAD), 
*   night owls (delayed sleep phase disorder/DSPD), 
*   early risers (advanced sleep phase disorder/ASPD),
*   night shift work disorder, and
*   chronic jet lag

You can find where it touches on this by doing a Ctrl-F for "Seasonal affective" and "Adaptations for".  It has a two-minute quickstart version; if you want to really get into the document, I recommend starting there.

In this post I will only be going into detail about how I suggest treating non-24 and SAD, and how non-24 treatment worked out for me specifically.  I do believe the other disorders can benefit from the practical advice I give here, though; a lot of this advice maps pretty smoothly onto DSPD.

I never got the Avoid Carbohydrates part of the protocol, which involves not eating carbs while melatonin is high in the blood late at night, to work for me - I didn't notice a difference, but also I wasn't trying very hard - so I will be skipping that as well.

VLiDACMel practical overview
============================

Light therapy (SAD, non-24, DSPD)
---------------------------------

*   Get light glasses like the [Luminette 3](https://www.amazon.com/New-Model-Luminette-Therapy-Glasses/dp/B07VMRRB9Y), and put them on within 1-2 hours of waking up.
*   For SAD, wear them for 30-90 minutes.  
*   For non-24/DSPD, wear them 2-8 hours on the lowest setting.

Total cost:  $200 for the Luminette 3

Dark/red therapy (non-24, DSPD)
-------------------------------

*   Get red laser safety glasses ([like these](https://www.amazon.com/FreeMascot-190nm-540nm-Wavelength-Treatment-Protection/dp/B0BYC25H5W)) and wear them for the rest of the night around or after sunset (except while driving). 
*   Change all your lightbulbs to RGB bulbs that can do pure red ([I use these](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09B7NQT2K), though I haven't had success automating them) and have them switch over to pure red after sunset.
*   Turn all your devices red after sunset with things like [f.lux](https://justgetflux.com/) set to the 1200k color temperature, or setting up a shortcut on your phone to turn on a pure red color filter.
*   Put red filter film ([like this](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GPICULC)) on all the other light sources you can't control, like ones on ovens, microwaves, routers, etc.

Total cost:  ~$20 for the red film and red glasses, plus ~$40 per set of 4 RGB bulbs

Melatonin (non-24, DSPD)
------------------------

Optionally:  experiment with different melatonin dosages between 0.3-3 mg, with different timings:  12-15 hours before wakeup or 3-5 hours before sleep time to advance your circadian nighttime, or 1 hour before sleep time to induce drowsiness.

Safety notes
------------

DO NOT USE LIGHT OR RED GLASSES WHILE DRIVING or during other dangerous vision tasks.  The VLiDACMel document also says that those with epilepsy, certain eye disorders, or motor disorders like restless legs or periodic limb movement, might suffer from using light glasses; Ctrl-F in [the document](https://circadiaware.github.io/VLiDACMel-entrainment-therapy-non24/SleepNon24VLiDACMel.html) for "contra-indicat" and "important health note," and consult with your doctor.

For people interested in treating SAD
=====================================

What is SAD?
------------

SAD is "seasonal affective disorder," i.e. getting depressed during winter due to not getting a lot of light.  Around these parts, [there](https://lorienpsych.com/2020/12/19/light-therapy/) [are](https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/hC2NFsuf5anuGadFm/how-to-build-a-lumenator) [many](https://meaningness.com/sad-light-lumens) [descriptions](https://www.lesswrong.com/w/lighting) [of how](https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/ZAMA4y6SbtFCTjjY4/a-new-option-for-building-lumenators) [to deal](https://forum.effectivealtruism.org/posts/bwhDhZQvbEcG4FEb8/preprint-is-out-100-000-lumens-to-treat-seasonal-affective) [with](https://karenwickert.com/building-a-lumenator-to-cope-with-sad-and-winter-blues/) [this](https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/p869mKDGL3onYsGYt/lumenator-2-0), generally by wiring up a bunch of extremely bright lights ("lumenators") inside your home.  I suggest below that light glasses could be competitive with lumenators for treating SAD.

Light glasses for SAD
---------------------

[Luminette 3s](https://www.amazon.com/New-Model-Luminette-Therapy-Glasses/dp/B07VMRRB9Y) are vastly better than light boxes.  They are highly portable; they're cheap enough at $200; you don't reduce their effectiveness by looking at other things; they don't require you to do nothing but stare at a light for half an hour.

They can also be competitive with [lumenator setups at home.](https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/qEweugBipR5P2cMyK/preprint-is-out-100-000-lumens-to-treat-seasonal-affective)  You can take them to work.  They are cheaper in capital and energy costs, and in the hassle required to set them up.  They do not suffer issues from looking away from the light.  You don't have to live in a place lit up like a film set (unless you're into that).

There are drawbacks.  You are now wearing chunky glasses above your eyes for 1-2 hours a day.  You have to keep them charged (Luminette batteries hold about 6-8 hours of charge).  You could drop them.

There are other light glasses, but the Luminettes are the most studied ones, and the ones with the longest history.  You can get other ones like [the AYO](https://www.amazon.com/AYO-Portable-Circadian-Disruptions-Problems/dp/B0B88BCDXQ) if you want though.  There are even cheaper ones on AliExpress, but I was told that their light spectra are not as well optimized and could be dangerous to the eyes.

They do not blind you while you wear them unless you are in a very dark place, or looking in dark nooks like inside a washing machine.

To use them for SAD, put them on within 1-2 hours of waking up and keep them on for 20-90 minutes.  I recommend getting a large sunglasses carrying case with a clip so you can easily put them away when you are done; they are not as robust against damage as a pair of modern eyeglasses, and the carrying case they come in doesn't have a clip.

People who don't wear glasses might want to try [ear hooks](https://www.amazon.com/SMARTTOP-Comfortable-Anti-slip-Sunglasses-Presbyopia/dp/B07R9R21YD) or [headbands](https://www.amazon.com/Sunglass-Adjustable-Sunglasses-Retainer-Eyewear/dp/B07MPC2DL1) to keep the light glasses from slipping off, though I haven't tried these myself.

The adjustable nose rest on the Luminettes can break occasionally, so I suggest [picking up a spare](https://myluminette.com/en-us/products/nose-rest-for-luminette-3) in case that happens.  

If you want this effect while driving, [there is a product called Drive](https://myluminette.com/en-us/products/drive), but I give no endorsements as I have not used or researched these.  This is a different product from just using the Luminettes while driving, presumably since it won't hamper your vision.

For people interested in treating non-24 or DSPD (staying up too late)
======================================================================

How I implement VLiDACMel
-------------------------

### Very long Light therapy

[The section on SAD has some helpful information about using Luminette 3s](https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/mHJFu6FAJc4ikscnq/light-glasses-red-light-therapy-for-non-24-and-sad-what#For_people_interested_in_treating_SAD), which is worth reading even if you're only here for non-24.

When I wake up, as soon as I think to, I put on the Luminettes on top of my glasses and turn them on to the lowest setting.  I only take them off to shower, to drive, or to look in dark nooks.  I use a glasses carrying case clipped to my purse to store them when I am out and about.  I keep them on until the sun sets (US eastern), but generally at least 4 hours a day.

I think I might have used them too much a few times, such that my wake time went backwards into the time I wanted to be sleeping.  But I think this generally followed after using them for 8 hours a day, several days in a row.  It's hard to tell the difference between this and other effects, but I'm writing it here in case someone else encounters this.  Edit:  see [the addendum](https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/mHJFu6FAJc4ikscnq/like-night-and-day-light-glasses-and-red-therapy-can-treat#Addendum___Recent_developments) for developments on this!

### Dark/red therapy

Around or after sunset: 

*   [f.lux](https://justgetflux.com/) turns on (having been set to 1200K under the "Change current color" setting)
*   I set all my [RGB lightbulbs](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09B7NQT2K) to go red via the bulbs' app
*   I tap the Shortcut I made on the main screen of my iPhone, which turns Color Filters on and off[^ww200r2ofhf].  The filter is set to pure red color tint.  This gives a much stronger red than the mild orange filter Night Shift gives.
*   Sometimes I put a [sheet of red film](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GPICULC) over my laptop's screen if I feel f.lux is not red enough for me that night.
*   If I am not at home and am not driving, I put on the [red laser safety glasses](https://www.amazon.com/FreeMascot-190nm-540nm-Wavelength-Treatment-Protection/dp/B0BYC25H5W) I keep in an additional carrying case attached to my purse.

I have cut off some of the red film sheet and taped it over the main uncontrollable sources of white light in my apartment, which are the microwave dial and the light inside the fridge.

### Melatonin

When I feel the need for drowsiness, I use [.3mg Life Extension melatonin](https://www.amazon.com/Life-Extension-Melatonin-300-Capsules/dp/B000X9QZZ2), breaking the capsule open under my tongue about an hour before I want to feel drowsy.  This may also be helping to shift my circadian sleep time earlier, but it's hard to tell.

For the administration route, VLiDACMel says sublingual is the best and asserts that melatonin rapidly expires with air contact.  The latter claim is why I got capsules, rather than tablets, to avoid expiry.  However, I looked into the studies it cites for that, and it only seems to be true if the melatonin is in a solution.  Solid melatonin, according to a couple other studies, is very stable.  So I might switch to sublingual tablets once I run out of my current bottle. 

Lived experience
----------------

I started the protocol around July 24 2025, as seen in the chart at the beginning.  The protocol seems reasonably robust against slip ups.  If I neglect the light glasses or using red light for a day or two, the result is just drifting a little, and resuming the protocol puts me back on track.

My friends rib me for basically living in a red room at night, but I view it as an acceptable trade to enable living like a normal human.  You get used to everything being various shades of red pretty quickly:

![What my room looks like.  Perhaps I should take up developing photos?](https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/832840713758441494/1455385277731180597/image.jpg?ex=695488a9&is=69533729&hm=f51f8d1b82ec4242af9bc2efdfb2e63f4a3077c7ac1852062c6f9d1af5f07fe9&=&format=webp&width=675&height=900)

What my bedroom looks like at night.  Perhaps I should take up developing photos?

I wouldn't be worried about seeming strange in public for wearing the Luminettes; people are more interested than anything, if they comment at all.

And of course - it is so GOOD to have this under control!  I can work a normal job now!  I can show up to meetups consistently!  I just feel overall more normal!  I cannot emphasize enough how fantastic this is.

Acknowledgements
================

I owe a massive debt of gratitude to Stephen Karl Larroque who actually wrote the VLiDACMel document and did the research.  Stephen, if you ever read this, from the bottom of my heart, seriously:  thank you.

Thank you to all the people at the East Coast Rationalist Megameetup who asked me about what that funny light thing I was wearing was.

And thank you to members of the ACX Discord for helping me edit this!

Addendum:  Recent developments
==============================

While I was writing this post (December '25/January '26), my sleep schedule started retreating earlier in the day much more than intended.  I reduced my usage of the light glasses, and eventually stopped them.  And now my wake time has stabilized to around 6:30-8:30am in the last couple weeks!  What is going on?  

My guesses for causative factors:

*   I traveled a lot and got poor sleep for a whole month.
*   I got sick multiple times for several weeks as a result of traveling.
*   I started taking a new medication (Vraylar).
*   The protocol established a rhythm, and now it needs much less maintenance.
*   Something else?

This could reframe the entire article depending on what is actually happening.  If non-24 is not just treatable, but curable, at least in some cases, that would be incredible!  I apologize for not rewriting the whole post to take this into account, but since it's still an active development (compared to the several months of successful treatment), I'm going to keep it as is.

[^ww200r2ofhf]: To replicate this on iPhone:  Shortcut app->new shortcut->Set Color Filters; Settings->Accessibility->Display Text & Size->Color Filter-> select Color Tint, set the Hue slider to the very left, set the Intensity slider to the right.