“I didn’t want my picture taken because I was going to cry. I didn’t know why I was going to cry, but I knew that if anybody spoke to me or looked at me too closely the tears would fly out of my eyes and the sobs would fly out of my throat and I’d cry for a week. I could feel the tears brimming and sloshing in me like water in a glass that is unsteady and too full.”
— Sylvia Plath
“People don’t come to therapy to change the past. They come to therapy to change the future.”
— Milton H. Erickson, M.D.
SO, WHAT REALLY IS DEPRESSION?
Depression is a constant feeling of sadness and loss of interest which stops us doing our normal activities. Different types of depression exist, with symptoms ranging from relatively minor to severe. Depression usually does not result from a single event, but from a mix of traumatic or stressful events and factors. e.g. family history, Illness and health issues, medication, drugs, alcohol and personality.
Our Depressed Behaviors can appear to others as: not going out anymore, not getting things done at work or school, withdrawing from close family and friends, relying on alcohol and sedatives
Our Depressed Feelings can appear to others as: looking like being overwhelmed or indecisive, guilty, irritable or frustrated, lacking in confidence, unhappy or disappointed, miserable or sad.
Our Depressed Thoughts can sound to others as: ‘I’m a failure’, ‘It’s my fault,’ ‘Life’s not worth living’, ‘Nothing good ever happens to me’, ‘People would be better off without me, ‘‘I’m worthless’
The idea of Milton Erickson’s people coming to therapy to change their future is key to helping with Depression.
Michael Yapko ,clinical psychologist, marriage and family therapist, Southern California,
comments on this future orientation:
“No amount of Medication can teach us more effective coping skills, and how to build a realistic and motivating future.”
“Helping people develop skills in these areas to empower them to live effectively is what therapists can do that medication can’t”
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY
Although the two conditions are different, we can have both at the same time.
Depression causes feelings of sadness, hopelessness and reduced energy, restlessness and agitation.
Anxiety creates feelings of nervousness, worry or dread, restlessness and agitation.
CAN HYPNOTHERAPY HELP US WITH DEPRESSION? _____ YES fortunately!
HOW DOES HYPNOTHERAPY HELP WITH TREATING DEPRESSION?
Hypnotherapy uses a number of therapeutic techniques and if we’ve already experienced hypnotherapy we’ll have thankfully benefited from some or all of these.
The therapist’s suggestions will depend on the condition or behaviour we are trying to change . Hypnotherapy can help target unwanted or unhealthy habits and possibly replace them with healthier behaviours. e.g. anxiety, weight loss, fear of flying, chronic pain, concentration problems, irritable bowel syndrome, smoking control, teeth grinding, etc.
Eg.1 being able to better control pain or anxiety or adjusting negative thought patterns that could be worsening depression symptoms.
Eg.2 In Depression, we usually want to change the debilitating effects in our current lives to a more effective, future life free of depression’s behaviours, feelings and thoughts.
A trained therapist uses various relaxation techniques to guide us into a hypnotic state. In this state, we are still conscious and aware. Our body becomes more relaxed and the mind more responsive to suggestions for the changes we’ve discussed with the therapist that we want.
If this rings a bell with you, please ring Suzy who would like to help you into a hopeful future.
