Some people call it the 'blues' and some people call it the 'pits' and some just call it 'feeling down in the dumps'. But whatever you call it, it doesn't feel very good at all.

The most common types of depression:
Major Depression, which is characterized by a sad mood, sleep disorders, and the lack of desire for food. Often when a person is in a major depression, there is a total lack of motivation and drive and the sufferer doesn't want to participate in life. Some people are completely disabled by depression, and some even consider suicide.

Dysthymia: This is a less severe form of long-term depression that generally does not totally disable the individual. But it prevents the person from feeling motivated and functioning at optimum levels. Sometimes people who are suffering with Dysthymia also suffer from Major Depression, and when this occurs it is referred to as double-depression.

Manic Depression is also known as Bipolar Disorder. This type of depression is less common than the first two. It involves cycles of the Manic state, alternated with the depressed state. This is often a long-term recurring disorder. Sometimes the mood swings are very rapid. But more often they tend to be gradual.

There are many variations of depression; the above are only the three most common.

Some of the symptoms of depression are:
Sadness; anxiety; pessimism; Insomnia and sleep disorders; guilt; feelings of worthlessness; weight loss; fatigue; restlessness; headaches; pain; and thoughts of suicide.

Sources of Depression:
Some types of depression run in families. Living in a stressful environment can lead to a depression. A trauma such as a serious loss, financial problems, or problems in a relationship can also precipitate a depression.

Women are twice as likely to become depressed as men are, but scientists do not know why.

If you are suffering from depression, you will want to consult with your physician. He may prescribe drugs for you. But you should keep in mind that every drug has side effects.

Wouldn't it be amazing if you could control and eliminate your depression just by thinking certain thoughts? I know that this might sound too simple, but very often; various types of depression are simply caused by thinking negative thoughts.

Don't believe me? Then test it out! It's really quite basic and simple. Just use your imagination to think about something that you find very sad or troubling. Go ahead, think about it right now! Then come back to this article.

Okay, so what happened? If you really got into it and visualized the sad situation, you began to feel sad and a little depressed. And the longer you allow yourself to stay in that thought pattern, the sadder you will feel. As you stay in those thoughts and keep feeling sadder, you lead yourself into a gradually deepening depression.

The good news is that if you think about a happy memory, then you will displace that sadness and depression and replace it with happy feelings.

Listen closely now, because here are the solutions to eliminating your depression: Our persistent thoughts spring forth from our unconscious mind. These are the thoughts that we find ourselves automatically thinking about throughout the day.

If the persistent thoughts that keep popping into your head are about your problems or sad experiences, then you increase your levels of stress, anxiety, and depression.

Now here is the 'Light at the end of the tunnel': Since hypnosis is a medium that we can use to change our unconscious thoughts, my NLP and self hypnosis stress management CD's will rapidly alter the way that you think, feel, and behave. The beauty here is that the same exact techniques that work for stress management also work just as well for eliminating depression!

Listen to me now, because I'm going to tell you exactly why and how it's going to happen. Hypnosis is a natural state of mind. Actually, it's the Alpha state of consciousness. We pass through the Alpha state as we fall asleep at night. And we pass through it again as we awaken in the morning. We also enter the Alpha state when we are imagining and daydreaming.

The unconscious mind is the seat of our emotions, and it's like a computer; the input controls the output! Hypnosis is an excellent tool for reaching directly into the unconscious mind and reprogramming it to automatically divert away from negative thoughts, and towards positive thoughts. It's a tool that allows you to bypass the consciousness to create positive expectations, which will then create positive feelings. You can overcome depression through hypnotherapy.

Alan B. Densky, CH is a certified consulting hypnotist and NLP Practitioner. Mr. Densky began his career in 1978, and has help thousands of clients over the years. He offers self-hypnosis CDs for a wide variety of topics including depression treatments, stress management, weight loss, smoke cessation and self-confidence. You are welcome to visit his free hypnosis article library, or watch his free video hypnosis collection.