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anti-depressants vs. hypnosis tapes A gentleman asked if there is a head-cleaners hypnosis tape available that can deal with depression. He says he hates to use antidepressants. The gist of my response is that he should exhaust all possibilities with anti- depressants -- and therapists, too -- and then add anything else he can find that helps keep him happy and thinking straight. Depression is a terrible struggle. Of the tapes I sell that might help, relax...relax, healing tree 2 and performance 2 are the most likely to help with depression. That's the answer to your question, but at the risk of possibly making you angry by telling you something a dozen others have already told you, please take note of the following: Depression is a very tough problem to deal with. It can mess with thinking and judgment so badly that it can seem like a good idea to deny one's self pleasures or destroy relationships. It can mess with thinking and judgment so badly that it can seem like a favor to loved ones to commit suicide. It can mess with thinking and judgment so badly that some people hallucinate or develop really strange, crazy delusions. Because it can mess up one's thinking in some major ways, it's a good idea to do everything you can do to deal with it. Studies have shown that to optimally deal with depression, it is best to be in counseling and be taking antidepressants. If you are in counseling and have exhausted the possibilities of medications, then support groups, exercise, healthy diet, a pet (a dog or cat, especially), hypnosis tapes, relaxation tapes, self-help books, massage, hobbies, etc., might also be very helpful additions. Again, hypnosis tapes, etc. might be helpful additions, but are not likely to work as substitutes for, medication and counseling. Many people hate to take antidepressants. If you hate the side-effects and you get very little help from antidepressants, it may just be the case that you will need to struggle with depression without the help that medications give many depression sufferers. However, if you haven't seen a good psychiatrist (an MD specializing in medications for depressions and other such disorders), you may still have hope of finding a medication that can take away the depression without a high side-effect price tag. See one. If you haven't tried all the medication tools and tricks that psychiatry has to offer, or if you are letting a negative attitude about meds deny you relief, you may be seriously, unfairly short-changing yourself. Many people hate the trial-and-error involved in finding the right medication for their particular physiology. This is, for some, a very frustrating and uncomfortable process that can take several months to get right. Many other people simply hate the idea of having to take a medication that everyone else doesn't have to take. Many people have similar reactions to the idea of psychotherapy, as well. All the arguments for medications apply to resistance to being in therapy. If you've tried it and hated it, be sure you've tried all the available possibilities before giving up. There are as many kinds of psychotherapists as there are psychotherapists. Every one is at least a little different from all the others and just because one doesn't work for you doesn't mean another won't. You don't need to be dredging up past issues you want to stay burried. The benefit is in identifying and correcting problem thinking before it causes further problems. Depression is a tough burden -- and again, it can really mess up one's thinking. Frankly, not wanting to be on a medication or be seeing a therapist that can help just because it's hard to sustain hope while you go through the steps to find the right one, is a good example of how depression can mess with judgment. Not wanting to be on a medication or seeing a therapist just because other people don't all need to be is another good example of how depression messes up judgment. Not biting the bullet and finding out if there is a medication and therapist that might work to alleviate depression is like giving up on getting glasses just because the optometrist is having a tough time finding the right prescription for you to see correctly. Not biting the bullet and taking effective medications or seeing a helpful therapist if they or he or she is available -- just because everybody doesn't take meds or go to therapists -- is like refusing to wear glasses because everybody doesn't wear them. These are very common but very counter-productive attitudes, usually mostly made up of frustration and anger at one's self, with a little negative stigma about mental health issues sprinkled in. Do everything you can do to find a medication and a therapist that help. Then make sure your diet and exercise are right and reduce any stressors that can be reduced. Then with some advice from your therapist, try support groups, pets, self-help books and tapes -- mine and any others available -- recognizing that finding tapes that can help will be a little like finding the right medication or therapist (there are a lot of possibilities and some might not help). See which tapes work for you and return the ones that don't for refunds. You can assist my efforts to provide articles and other supports to the visitors to this site. Please support this site. other ways to support this site - this and all other shrink rap articles are written by g. m. johnson, phd - see the head-cleaners home page for a link to more information on dr. johnson or for links to other shrink rap articles

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