In the U. S., Dr. Gabor accepts clients diagnosed with depression only by referral from their psychiatrists or psychotherapists. From the hypnotherapy perspective, depression is the result of operating from disempowering, negatively-oriented and fear-based belief systems, at the conscious and the subconscious levels of the mind. Depression implies the devaluation of the self. Thus, people with depression don’t recognize their own value anymore, lack self-confidence, self-esteem and self-love, and most of them have lost hope. They don’t feel love anymore.
“Depression is a spiritual crisis” according to psychiatrist Stanislav Grof, MD.
Depression is an identity crisis, because the person doesn’t know who he/ she is anymore and believes the disempowering stories the negative thoughts create. Negative thoughts are illogical, irrational and incorrect information.
Most of the times, depression is associated with loss of interest, sleep disturbances, unpleasant dreams or nightmares, fatigue, weight changes, agitation, lack of concentration, low sex drive, headaches and various levels of anxiety. Clients with depression need to be reminded of the benefits of positive thinking and that we create our life and physiology with our thoughts and beliefs.
Studies show that the way we think determines what we feel and influences our health. Thinking pleasant, optimistic and happy thoughts causes the body to release endorphins and dopamine, the so-called “happiness hormones,” which determine a state of well-being. At the same time, the number of the immune system cells increases and the human body becomes more resistant to diseases. The state of meditation or self-hypnosis has the same effects. When we think negative thoughts, the brain produces catecholamines, the “fight-or-flight hormones” or “stress hormones,” and we feel accordingly. The number of the immune system cells decreases below normal limits, causing a lower resistance to diseases.
If a person is depressed, he or she needs to become extremely serious in redirecting their thinking toward positivity, including the subconscious thinking. The highest rate of suicide is due to untreated depression.
Depression is associated with shrinkage in the hippocampus, an area of the brain responsible for learning and memory that also regulates the autonomic nervous system. The autonomic nervous system regulates bodily functions such as the heart rate, digestion, respiratory rate, pupillary response, urination, and sexual arousal. A study showed that depressed people have less brain tissue in the brain memory centers. It revealed that the effects become more severe the longer an individual suffers from depression, as well as in people who receive a diagnosis at an early age. The study used brain imaging to compare brain volumes in people with and without the depression. The findings are based on evidence from MRI scans. From 8927 people collected by 65 researchers in 7 countries, 1728 patients had a diagnosis of major depression and 7199 were healthy people. Researchers found that 65% of the depressed participants had significantly smaller hippocampus which is near the center of the brain. The hippocampus is involved in forming new memories and connecting these memories to emotions. Recurrent depression does more harm to the hippocampus the more one leaves it untreated. Identifying and treating depression in an early stage is vital to prevent hippocampus damage, particularly among teenagers. There is a good evidence that with treatment the damage is reversible. The hippocampus is one of the unique areas of the brain that’s rapidly generating new connections between neurons/ brain cells. Depression however destroys the connection between brain cells but not the cells themselves. Treating depression effectively does not just mean medicines but also psycho-therapeutic approaches (including hypnotherapy). Social interactions are also important for people who isolate themselves but others use social interactions as a form of escapism, a form of denial of their own problems.
Our overall mental health is affected by our programs of thinking, and what meaning we give to the circumstances and events that occur in our life (how we interpret them). The disempowering and negatively-oriented thoughts that lead to depression and insomnia have reached deeply in the subconscious mind, but they can be optimized by supplying positive suggestions in hypnosis, and thus support the mind and brain in creating new neuronal pathways of thinking.
The mind and the brain have the ability to incorporate new information and discard the old, disempowering ideas. This property is called neuroplasticity or cortical remapping. Hypnotherapy helps the subconscious mind learn new healthy beliefs and create new pathways of thinking in order to interpret life’s events in a more empowering, optimistic, positive and realistic way.
Dr. Gabor offers private sessions to help clients challenged by depression overcome:
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Negative, compulsive thinking and negative feelings
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Stress
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Insomnia, restless sleep, unpleasant dreams, nightmares, sleep paralysis
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Fatigue
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Low self-esteem and self-worth
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Lack of self-love and self-confidence
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Fears and phobias
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Anxiety and panic attacks
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Grief
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Hopelessness
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Inability to focus and retain information
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Pain and headaches
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Low immunity
Dr. Gabor’s Medical Hypnotherapy program for overcoming depression benefits clients by activating the mind-body healing mechanisms, optimizing the conscious and subconscious thinking for redirecting the thinking process toward positivity and optimism, and creating a state of inner peace and balance. Clients learn that they can choose to think positive thoughts and replace the disempowering beliefs, taking full responsibility for the way we think and feel. This powerful program helps Dr. Gabor’s clients rapidly reach a positive and empowering mental state and a balanced emotional state.
When people suffer from depression, the critical and negatively-oriented part of your mind—the negative ego—is very strong, and convinces them that it’s impossible to change anything, and that it’s foolish to even think positive and optimistic thoughts. The fastest way to truly come out of depression, which is a result of operating from disempowering programs of thinking, is through embracing positive, realistic thinking.”
More information and case studies in dr. Gabor’s book “Home at the Tree of Life.”
For more information, to schedule a private session or register for the certification programs please call dr. Elena Gabor at 310-614-9919 or email her at drelenagabor@yahoo.com. Read more about services…