It is such a far reaching condition that its effects are thought to be felt in practically every kind of illness, every kind of disease.

Yet so few of us really have an effective stress management strategy in place in order to bring about the essential stress relief that we need.

A certain amount of stress, of course, can be beneficial. In reasonable amounts, it is perfectly natural and relatively harmless, indeed, it may well be essential in order to really motivate and prod us into getting things done and performing at our best.

But when stress takes on too much of a driving, overpowering role, it can exact a real toll and have truly damaging effects on both our mental and physical health.

Such, unfortunately, is the case in many industrialised countries such as the UK, the US, Canada and Australia today, where the most common mental health issues are anxiety and depression and in which stress plays a major underlying role.

At work, stress can turn us into jittery, anxious and resentful workers, unable to function as we really should; while at home, stress can provoke marital conflict and problems with children.

Often, we are able to notice the signs of stress in others much easier than we can in ourselves.

Yet few of us truly know how to manage stress -- even if we are fully aware we suffer from it. We simply lack the stress management and stress relief strategies for dealing with and releasing it.

And so alcohol, drugs, tranquillizers and anti-depressants are regularly turned to in an attempt to escape from and cope with the often devastating and frequently incapacitating effects of stress. However enticing, employing distractions and strategies such as these is simply ineffective when it comes to real stress treatment and stress relief; they are temporary at best and short sighted at worst.

Usually however, they merely serve to worsen and aggravate an already inflamed situation.

Yet there are other ways to deal with and manage stress that are really effective and far from harmful. Exercise and nutrition, meditation and yoga are all tried and true methods of stress management. (In fact, we recommend that everyone engages in some form of regular exercise.)

But for sheer effectiveness and rapidity of results, few things can match the power of self-hypnosis for stress management and stress treatment.

The reason for this is because hypnosis is capable of producing a wonderful, calm state that is so far from stress that it has been called 'a state of grace'.

Indeed, self-hypnosis offers a method of completely releasing stress, providing a valuable way - through post-hypnotic suggestion - to manage stress and anxiety. When done correctly, it can provide potent and ongoing stress relief and stress treatment that lasts far beyond the actual sessions of self-hypnosis.

And the amazing thing is that practising self-hypnosis needn't take forever.

Here in the UK, we teach people how to enter a deep trance state in a matter of seconds. Remaining in this wonderful, calm state of hypnosis for a few short minutes, they are able to let go of and free themselves from the harmful and potentially devastating effects of stress.

But learning self-hypnosis from a hypnotherapist is certainly not the only way. True, this is the easiest, most rapid and effective method of mastering the art of self-hypnosis since, correctly done, it is taught while actually in the trance state, but it is not the only way. A visit to your local book shop will produce a selection of good books that will take you through the process step by step.

One thing is sure: time and effort invested in learning and then practising some form of self-hypnosis brings real rewards when it comes to stress relief and stress management. It is an extremely potent method that enables you to manage stress and is perhaps the most effective stress treatment there is.

If stress is something you find yourself struggling with on a regular basis, self- hypnosis - together with good nutrition and moderate exercise - is the very best stress management and stress relief tool you could use.