dancinonwater
11-27-2011, 05:03 PM
Hello everyone, I'm new to the forum, and I have been struggling for years with OCD and also ADHD. Until a few weeks ago, I did not know that it was OCD, so figuring that out has been a really great experience, and, after lurking on this forum for a while, I decided that it was time to register and get some of my ideas out there!
Anyway, I know that for many of us with mental or emotional health issues, our pets can be some of our greatest assets. Ever since I was a little girl, only 6 years old, I knew that I needed a dog of my own. And finally, 7 years later, when I was 13, my parents agreed to let me get one with the money that I had been saving up since I was little. Gracie, my maltese, has changed my life. With her, I am able to be so much more social and do things that I would never have been able to do before. Although she is small, she makes me feel safer. I went from needing my parents to tuck me in every single night and check every closet, bed, drawer, shower curtain, etc. for intruders and murderers before I went to bed to going to turning off the lights myself and heading upstairs alone, but with Gracie.
My point is, I now consider Gracie to be my Emotional Support Animal. She is there for me all the time, I know that i couldn't live without her. I also know that she has helped me keep my OCD at bay so much, but it has inevitably gotten worse as I've gotten older. So, to explain, an Emotional Support Animal is not a service dog, but an animal that is prescribed by a doctor to help patients with emotional issues, including things like anxiety disorders and depression. The animal can live in no-pets housing, and can fly on airplanes with the owner, with a doctor's note. They cannot go in other no-pets-allowed places.
A step up from an ESA would be a PSD, or Psychiatric Service Dog. The handler of this dog must be legally disabled, and the dog must perform tasks that the disabled handler cannot do on her own because of her disability. I say "her" because 90% of the people with PSDs are women. Tasks would include things like searching a building for intruders for someone who has PTSD and believes that there are intruders in his/her home, or alerting and distracting a handler with OCD when they pick the skin on their arm. A PSD is just like a regular service because it can go anywhere that the public is normally allowed, must be well behaved, and must be task trained, but the handler has an "invisible disability".
I would really love to train Gracie to be my PSD, because my OCD is definitely disabling and keeps me from doing so many things that other people can do. Obviously I want to exhaust every other option first, but I never seem to respond to medications, so I think that this could be a huge help, even if only on my most anxious days. Having Gracie with me would allow me to do these things, and the tasks that she would perform would be so beneficial. Because I do not live on my own, I think that I can live without a service dog, unless my anxiety gets even worse, as it has done as I've grown up, but I will definitely train her so that she can help me when I go to college and live on my own.
Does anyone have a service dog or emotional support animal? Is anyone interested in getting one? I have done extensive research on the subject, as it has sort of become my hobby/obsession and I hope to raise PSDs when i'm older (as a side job, not my full career), so I can answer any of your questions if you post them! And I can further explain the laws if anyone is confused.
Anyway, I know that for many of us with mental or emotional health issues, our pets can be some of our greatest assets. Ever since I was a little girl, only 6 years old, I knew that I needed a dog of my own. And finally, 7 years later, when I was 13, my parents agreed to let me get one with the money that I had been saving up since I was little. Gracie, my maltese, has changed my life. With her, I am able to be so much more social and do things that I would never have been able to do before. Although she is small, she makes me feel safer. I went from needing my parents to tuck me in every single night and check every closet, bed, drawer, shower curtain, etc. for intruders and murderers before I went to bed to going to turning off the lights myself and heading upstairs alone, but with Gracie.
My point is, I now consider Gracie to be my Emotional Support Animal. She is there for me all the time, I know that i couldn't live without her. I also know that she has helped me keep my OCD at bay so much, but it has inevitably gotten worse as I've gotten older. So, to explain, an Emotional Support Animal is not a service dog, but an animal that is prescribed by a doctor to help patients with emotional issues, including things like anxiety disorders and depression. The animal can live in no-pets housing, and can fly on airplanes with the owner, with a doctor's note. They cannot go in other no-pets-allowed places.
A step up from an ESA would be a PSD, or Psychiatric Service Dog. The handler of this dog must be legally disabled, and the dog must perform tasks that the disabled handler cannot do on her own because of her disability. I say "her" because 90% of the people with PSDs are women. Tasks would include things like searching a building for intruders for someone who has PTSD and believes that there are intruders in his/her home, or alerting and distracting a handler with OCD when they pick the skin on their arm. A PSD is just like a regular service because it can go anywhere that the public is normally allowed, must be well behaved, and must be task trained, but the handler has an "invisible disability".
I would really love to train Gracie to be my PSD, because my OCD is definitely disabling and keeps me from doing so many things that other people can do. Obviously I want to exhaust every other option first, but I never seem to respond to medications, so I think that this could be a huge help, even if only on my most anxious days. Having Gracie with me would allow me to do these things, and the tasks that she would perform would be so beneficial. Because I do not live on my own, I think that I can live without a service dog, unless my anxiety gets even worse, as it has done as I've grown up, but I will definitely train her so that she can help me when I go to college and live on my own.
Does anyone have a service dog or emotional support animal? Is anyone interested in getting one? I have done extensive research on the subject, as it has sort of become my hobby/obsession and I hope to raise PSDs when i'm older (as a side job, not my full career), so I can answer any of your questions if you post them! And I can further explain the laws if anyone is confused.