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All people experience feelings of sadness. For most people, these occasions last for a few hours or days. Almost twenty percent of the people in the world, however, are diagnosed with clinical depression, in which these moods last several days, weeks, or months. These emotions result in impaired functioning in career, family, or social interactions, which can become disabling. Females who have signs of depression after becoming pregnant are sometimes diagnosed with perinatal depression. This problem may develop any time after a woman becomes pregnant, or any time thereafter, until the baby is one year old. Most commonly, however, those who develop this illness after the child is born are diagnosed with postpartum depression. Perinatal depression or postpartum depression is linked with many causes. These causes can be physical. For example, females with a previous or familial history of clinical depression or mental illness are very likely to experience perinatal depression or postpartum depression. Furthermore, alterations in hormone levels in postpartum mothers, like decreases in estrogen and progesterone levels, can precipitate this illness. After childbirth, thyroid malfunctions may result in symptoms of depression such as tiredness, irritability, and despair. Sometimes, mental depression is a result of emotional issues. Mothers often are tired and stressed in learning to juggle the demands made by the new family member. These issues are sometimes strengthened by a lack of support from family, friends, or significant other. Financial issues may also contribute to the development of postpartum depression. Perinatal depression and postpartum depression can have serious consequences for both the woman and her infant. Worry and depression may hinder a woman from bonding fully with her child or being capable of meeting her infant's physical and psychological needs. This may worsen the mother's emotions of insignificance, self-blame, and low self-worth. The baby is also stressed by the new mother's issues. Failure to connect with his or her mother may cause the infant to develop trust issues in personal attachments throughout life. Further, children who do not have their physical or psychological needs met often do not grow and develop properly. This problem, described as "failure to thrive," may be very serious or even deadly to the baby. Perinatal depression or postpartum depression can affect everyone in the family. The spouse or significant other often feels ignored or unable to help these depression symptoms. This can irreparably damage their relationship. Other children in the family often experience related feelings, and have school-related or peer difficulties as well. Depression damages the whole family. For this reason, women experiencing perinatal depression or postpartum depression should get depression treatment as soon as possible. Several techniques can be used, including talk therapy and medication therapy. Medications, however, are often harmful to nursing infants, and may yield erratic results because of the wide hormonal fluctuations a woman has during these tumultuous times. Furthermore, typical counseling approaches can be lengthy and expensive. Two therapies for dealing with depression that do not require medicines and often rapidly show incredibly effective results are hypnotherapy and Neuro-Linguistic Programming, or NLP. Traditional Hypnotherapy is most effective for clients who are effortlessly hypnotized or are capable of accepting suggestions without feeling a need to critique or understand them. Ericksonian Hypnotherapy is very effective for people who often overanalyze. These therapies assist people to unwind and eliminate tension. For clients who tend to be more critical or analytical thinkers, NLP is usually more effective. Using NLP, trained professionals give people depression help by helping them to restructure their mental processes. This strategy can, very literally, allow a client think beyond the depressive state and overcome it. Clients can overcome depression by mastering NLP strategies like anchoring. They are taught to remember times when they were happy and in control of their circumstances. Remembering the memory renews these feelings. Individuals are taught to touch two fingers together and remember these feelings. The subconscious mind relates the touch of the two fingers with the feelings. Hence, the finger touch becomes an "anchor." Then, if the client begins to become stressed, he or she sparks the anchor by touching these same two fingers together again. This brings back feelings of self-control and creates empowerment. By using another strategy called the Flash, people learn to think away harmful feelings. They teach their subconscious minds to instantly substitute positive thoughts for negative ones. When negative thoughts arise, the mind instantly substitutes them for positive responses. After learning this strategy, people find it almost impossible to think negative thoughts! Summary: Perinatal depression and postpartum depression often have harmful results for a woman and her new child. The rest of their family may also be profoundly affected because of these conditions. Because of the probable severity of the consequences of this condition, new mothers with depression should get treatment as soon as signs develop. Two very effective treatments that do not require medication or great outlays of time and financial resources are hypnotherapy and NLP.
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Alan B. Densky, CH specializes in depression and stress related symptoms as an NGH certified hypnotist. He's helped thousands of clients since 1978. He offers CDs for self hypnosis therapy for depression. Visit his Neuro-VISION self hypnosis site for the hypnosis article library, or watch his free video hypnosis collection.
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