The Vital Role Of Emotional Support Animals From Harlem To Hollywood

By Bretton Love

In the recent past, mental health issues have been on the rise and this can be attributed to the fact that life is no longer as you knew it when growing up. Baby boomers can attest to this! It’s tough out there and you don’t want to be in your worst state of mind when calamities strike. It will be next to impossible to get yourself back on your feet and on track without psychological support. This is one of the main reasons you’ll see people opting for psychological therapy on their own volition.

There are a myriad of ways you can get emotional support. It may be through your shrink, spiritual leader, self-remedies, or the most effective of ways there exists today, through emotional support animals. While it may still be in the pipelines, the use of emotional support animals has been in existence for ages. Let’s face it, mental health issues have become as common as muck and the best you can do is to know how to deal with both your psychological and emotional issues. Because, as it turns out, even the shrinks you visit have issues they’d appreciate to be helped with.

Defining an Emotional Support Animal

Well, before we get to it, you may be wondering what an emotional support animal (ESA) is, and you’ll be well within your lane to ask this. To definitively answer your question, you’ll first need to realize that there are so many people going through emotional issues that have been a bother to them for quite a long time. It may be that conventional therapy and treatment measures haven’t been working for them. Now, if you fall into this category, you’ve most definitely come to the right place. Emotional support animals or sometimes referred as emotional support pets are animals that provide comfort, well being, support or aid through companionship and affection to patients with emotional, psychological, or physical disabilities. These animals have no specific training compared to service animals, and though they’re typically cats and dogs, it is not restricted by species; it can be any animals such as spiders, horses, rabbits, etc. But before you get yourself acquainted with your support pet, there are aspects that may need to be factored in.

These include:

• Animal rights and animal laws: Now, just because a patient is going through some emotional and psychological issues is no reason to treat their ESAs as they’d wish. There are laws that protect animals and you’ll be best advised if you’d considered learning about them first.
• Selecting the right animal: You want to be sure about the animal you chose to be your support pet. There are different types of pets out there, but you’ll, of course, want to go for the smart ones both in appearance and upstairs as well. The pet must be approved and certified by the relevant authorities for their role in your life. They need to be clean, checked by a vet, and in addition to this, well mannered.
• Responsibilities: Emotional support animals don’t come cheap. Let’s be real here. It costs you some bucks to talk to a shrink, right? Well, consider the animal as a favor because all they require from a patient is proper maintenance including feeding, cleaning, and taking care of their health issues. Let’s also not forget about the initial investment!

With that having been cleared, let’s get to our main topic of discussion; here are the roles of emotional support animals:

1. They Provide Emotional Support

Just as the name suggests, this is exactly what emotional support animals do. It’s really not about having the animal around, but what they can provide you with. They’ll offer you their unconditional love, affection, and believe it or not, they’ll be there in both your low and high moments and not a single time, will they complain about you.

2. They Can Be Incorporated With Your Other Treatment Options

The fact that you’ve chosen a support pet doesn’t mean that you have to do away with your other emotional treatment options. The fact of the matter is that they both will be quite effective in managing your condition. When used in conjunction with your other treatment plans, ESAs can help facilitate a better life that’s filled with much joy and comfort.

3. They Play an Important Role in Regulating Your Everyday Stress Factors

Nothing is as fulfilling as watching an animal play; a dog chasing their tail, a cat playing with a ball of yarn, or a parrot trying to imitate you. Even in your worst moments, you’ll have something to smile about. However, you’ll need to ensure that your support animal is safe in all their playfulness. In addition to this, they’ll also help to stabilize and manage your intense emotions.

4.  ESAs Can Help Calm Your Nerves

The reality is, emotionally challenged patients will tend to distance themselves from social life. One thing to note is that, this is the time you need your friends and family around even the more. They’ll help to offer you the much needed love you need in your low moments, and help in supplying you with your essential needs. But if you cannot stand the idea of having friends or family around, then having a pet that will be there for you to show you love, pull out a chair when you need it, or open and close the doors for you, then it will be worth it if you considered it. As earlier mentioned, pets will seldom complain, comment, or criticize. This will help to calm your nerves and in addition to this, you’ll be less nervous of the disturbing issues surrounding your life. So before you shut your doors, get yourself an ESA and see the value they’ll add into your life.

Well, ladies and gentlemen, the pointers above speak for themselves. There’s no need for you to continue with your emotional pain, distress, and suffering. Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing couldn’t have found a better partner for man’s trying moments than a support pet. Be happy, stay healthy, and take good care of your support pet. They need it as much as you do!