I have “Chronic Atypical Depression” (so not only do I have a mental disorder, I have an atypical one. Figures) and I have been having depressive episodes since I was 13. I’m 29 now, and I finally have my depression relatively under control.
I have been reading lately about Psychiatric Service Dogs. I love dogs and the more I read about Psychiatric Service Dogs (PSD) the more fascinated I become with this whole subject. PSDs are trained to help people with severe mental illness get through their day. The dogs can be trained to remind their human to take medicine, wake their human up at a certain time so they don’t sleep to much, recognize when their human going to have a panic/anxiety attack, recognize the onset of a manic phase, provide comfort when their human is crying, the list goes on and on. The dog is a true service dog and goes everywhere with their human. The dog actually senses the chemical changes in their human that indicated a psychotic episode, depressive episode, manic episode, whatever their particular human experiences.
I don’t have a service dog and I don’t belong to any of the organizations (yet), but I can see how one would have been amazing during the times I was so depressed I couldn’t get out of bed. One handler tells the story of how she locked herself in the bathroom, thinking about killing herself, and her dog would not quit scratching at the door, scratched for hours until she let him in. Now, her dog won’t let her shut the bathroom door at all if he’s not in there with her. There is another man who talks about how during a business meeting he began to get really nervous and anxious and was talking all the time and the dog came over and leaned against him to get him to calm down. There are so many people who say that they are able to function as “normal” human beings b/c of their PSDs.
If you’re interested in more info, the best place to start is the Psychiatric Service Dog Society (www.psychdog.com). It’s pretty cool stuff. Sorry it’s not an actual link, I haven’t figured this all out yet. I’m new at this, alright!?
I, too, suffer from depression and I thought this post was really interesting. It makes perfect sense. I have two dogs and they always seem to know when my husband or I is not feeling well, physically or mentally. Of course, they try to make us feel better by lying on top of us. Anyway, it’s nice to see alternatives (or supplemental help) to meds.
I totally know about those dogs! I think I told you once that I used to dog sit for a guide dog-anyway I found out about the PSD’s through that family and they told me a story about a woman who was bipolar and had a PSD service dog. She (the woman, not the dog) locked herself in the bathroom to commit suicide and the dog BROKE THE BATHROOM DOOR DOWN TO GET TO HER! How much cooler, kinder and awesomer are dogs than humans?!? They also have service dogs for diabetics that alert when their blood sugar is too high or too low. In my next life I am going to be a dog and I am going to appear on Animal Planet in a segment about an amazing dog that saved a bunch of people from a terrorist plot.
I, too, suffer from depression. I am taking meds for my depression, I also have anxiety I find my dog help with both my depression and anxiety especially with my anxiety. When I was told I am a diebetic thats when I believe my depression and fear started. You see I am a single mom, my daughter is only 12 years old. I would love know where I or get started to train my dog Mia. She a mini Australian shepherd. she has become my very best friend. she knows when I am feeling anxiety especially when am driving. I would love very much to have her become my service dog for my diabetes.