Hypnotherapy alone is not a treatment for clinical depression, and any practitioner who suggests otherwise is overstepping. For moderate to severe depression, a GP and clinical psychologist are the appropriate first contacts. What hypnotherapy can do effectively is work alongside existing treatment on the patterns that maintain low mood: disrupted sleep, withdrawal, automatic negative self-talk, and the flattened motivation that accompanies depressive episodes. I work with clients experiencing low mood at my Edinburgh practice as part of a wider support plan, not as a replacement for clinical care. If someone comes to me describing symptoms that indicate clinical depression, I refer appropriately. My background in cognitive neuropsychology at the University of Edinburgh means I can make that clinical distinction accurately, which is not something every hypnotherapist in Edinburgh can do.