Apart from emigrating, there are two things you can do. The first is to get more light. You could start by doing this simple exercise. Place an anglepoise lamp containing a 60-watt opaque (not clear) bulb, preferably with no writing on it, about a metre away and directly in line with your line of vision. Make sure you can turn the light on and off without moving your head. Turn the light on and look directly at the bulb for one minute, no longer. After one minute, turn the light off, close your eyes (put on a blindfold if the room is not completely dark) and focus on the after-image, the phosphene, without moving your head, until it completely vanishes. This usually takes three to four minutes.

The second vital task is to get to grips with your nutritional needs. Balance your energy by eating a wholefood diet rich in oily fish, nuts, seeds and wholegrains, and lots of fresh fruit and vegetables, while limiting the sugary foods and refined carbo-hydrates that can play havoc with your blood sugar levels and moods. Supplement-wise, take a good multivitamin and mineral supplement, plus the amino acids phenylalanine or tyrosine *(2g of either or lg of both), and 1.5g of tryptophan or 150mg of 5-HTP (the chemical from which the brain makes serotonin), or 200mg of SAMe or 600mg of TMG (trimethylglycine). SAMe is an amino acid that has been well proven to boost mood by helping the brain make serotonin. SAMe is, however, very expensive and unstable, so you might choose to take the amino acid TMG from which it is made. You need three times as much of TMG, but it is both cheaper and more stable. Some supplements provide all these nutrients in combination.