What are the steps to getting a service dog?

[ewoksolo]

Hello,

I am brand new to this forum. I was a bit hesitant to post anything, as I am very private about my struggles, but I thought I would give it a try - it may prove helpful to have a community of people who can relate to what I'm going through.

Anyway, in an attempt to make my story fairly short...

I've struggled with anxiety my whole life, so for quite a while I didn't think much of it. I just thought that this is the way I am and I have to find my own ways to deal with it, which is in some ways still true. However, I noticed that over the past year or so, when people ask me anything about my childhood, I seem to have a very difficult time remembering a good portion of my life (I'm 18 years old and have a hard time remembering the last 5-8 years). More recently, I have begun having terrifying nightmares where I wake up and my body is in so much pain, and mentally I am in a panicky state. I'll be driving and all of a sudden just see an image flash in front of me or walking down the hallway at home or work and see a tall man standing in a doorway, but when I take a second look there is no one there. I have not been formally diagnosed with PTSD, but I have worked in the medical field for a few years and am currently a nursing student, so I am familiar with the disorder. A few doctors that I have seen recently have also suggested it as a possibility.

From February-November 2014, I became very sick all of a sudden, unable to get out of bed most days. On the days when I was able to get myself out of bed, I would lose feeling in my legs and fall on the floor or down the stairs, taking about 30 minutes to 3 hours to begin to gain the feeling back enough to stand and walk. Any time I was outside for over 30 minutes during the summer, I would be symptomatic of heat stroke, and I could barely walk a mile with out having to use an inhaler. Twice this combination of symptoms got so bad that I was rushed to the hospital twice in three days because my anxiety attacks would send myself into a seizure followed by unconsciousness.

I've grown up with dogs my whole life - that part I do remember. I rode horses competitively for 10 years, spending every day at the barn with my horse and dog. Recently, though, I had to give up my dog for adoption because my living situation has been unpredictable (I was kicked out of the house at 14 to live in my car until a family took me in for about a year). I didn't think it was fair to the dog. He is in a great home now, but I've noticed that it is so much more difficult to talk myself through an anxiety attack with out the presence of a dog.

I'm just wondering if you guys know anything about what it takes go get a service dog. I know that during my first counseling visit next week, I should be able to find out more information, but what do I need to know before then? Is it very difficult? Is it something therapists have a hard time agreeing to helping you with?

I know this isn't the only option, but I really think that a service dog could help me quite a bit. Please share all the information you know!

Thanks

 

[shimmerz]

From February-November 2014, I became very sick all of a sudden, unable to get out of bed most days. On the days when I was able to get myself out of bed, I would lose feeling in my legs and fall on the floor or down the stairs, taking about 30 minutes to 3 hours to begin to gain the feeling back enough to stand and walk.

I gave up my dog for this reason. I absolutely love dogs. It killed me to let him go. I believe you must be well enough to take care of a dog in order to get one. This type of physical response may not be helpful in that way.

 

[Kefira]

I have not been formally diagnosed with Link Removed, but I have worked in the medical field for a few years and am currently a nursing student, so I am familiar with the disorder.

Formal diagnosis seems like the next step. Try not to get too far ahead of yourself- depending on what route you go it's important to be able to demonstrate that traditional treatments have not worked for you. More on that in a bit.

From February-November 2014, I became very sick all of a sudden, unable to get out of bed most days. On the days when I was able to get myself out of bed, I would lose feeling in my legs and fall on the floor or down the stairs,

I agree with @shimmerz that carefully considering whether you will be able to continue to take care of the dog would be important. No one here can answer that for you, but while the dogs can be trained to alert for seizure response and for mobility issues it is a fine line between being a good candidate and simply not being far enough along or well managed enough through other treatment.

Okay, so everything below is my personal understanding based on the research I've done for the last couple years. Feel free to contact me via PM if I can be of any assistance- I'm currently in the process of receiving a service dog through an organization. I don't know everything, but I've been training with the other half of my team, L, for a few months now and have learned a lot.

ADI is an essential resource: http://www.assistancedogsinternational.org/about-us/types-of-assistance-dogs/service-dog/
So in my opinion is Service Dog Central: http://www.servicedogcentral.org/content/

The first thing is that you MUST fit the legal definition of disabled. Documentation to prove this may be required by a program, but is a good idea regardless. Look this up under the ADA if you're unsure.

I'm just wondering if you guys know anything about what it takes go get a service dog. I know that during my first counseling visit next week, I should be able to find out more information, but what do I need to know before then? Is it very difficult? Is it something therapists have a hard time agreeing to helping you with?

Probably you won't be able to find out more information. Unless your therapist has had someone who has been through the process. Most mental health professionals I know personally do not have a clue what the laws are or even what an SD could be trained to do to mitigate a client's symptoms. It's just not common enough for that to be on their radar.

In the US you have two options: owner training is still a federally protected option but in certain states there are limitations during the training phase. That may be working with a trainer certified in a particular way, or it may severely limit access until the dog can be considered an SD by the ADA (ie: fit for public access, well mannered, and task trained to mitigate your disability). There are also programs that train and place service dogs. Most are flooded with apps, many do not work with Psy clients, and some are exceedingly expensive. That said, owner training is difficult to impossible for most people with mental illness unless they have a lot of experience. And you never know how the laws are going to change in the future, so it's my personal opinion that if you can find an ADI program to take you on that is the path of least resistance.

All that said, really carefully consider what exactly you need the dog for. If you're looking for help in the home, the classification is an ESA- Emotional Support Animal. This is something a therapist can provide paperwork for, and you would be free to train or get help training the dog for some basic tasks around the home that would help you as well as for helping you with anxiety without all of the issues posed by public access. They can fly with fewer restrictions and are allowed in residential housing with their owners but do not have legal rights to public access. This is all a lot of people really want/need given the certain challenges that come with having an SD in public with you, and it takes a lot less time, work, and money to accomplish.


ETA: I think the most important thing about 'the process' is that while the Federal Government in the United States provides protections, the Americans with Disabilities Act doesn't set forth a specific process nor are there any legal standards for SDs to operate under. There is only the legal definition of a Service Dog. Assistance Dogs International and others have set those standards, which may mean a lot as the laws in this area change. This is, after all, around a 10 year commitment and there are a lot of people who believe the policies will be tightened up because of people abusing the system (or the prevalence of public opinion that people are gaming the system, with no way to prove whether it's true currently). This is one of the other reasons I strongly recommend going with an experienced organization they have insurance and lawyers on retainer. As an independent owner trainer there's just a lot of room to run into legal trouble without someone to back you up. There's also a lack of support in learning how to handle the dog and really USE the dog, which you can only get working with experienced trainers who have trained SDs (preferably for PTSD), whether that is independently or as a client of an organization.

 

[anonymous]

Get a diagnosis.

At this point you aren't legally disabled.

 

[Changing4Best]

I trained my own Service Dog. There were two books I bought through Amazon.com that were helpful. One was entitled HOW TO TRAIN YOUR OWN SERVICE DOG and the other had a similar title, but it was PSYCHIATRIC SERVICE DOG instead of just a plain one. I don't recall the authors. These books gave helpful info about how to train your service dog to do various kinds of tasks for you such as remind you to take your meds on a given schedule. These books also had some info on dog training in general.

 

[ewoksolo]

Thanks for the insight, guys.

As an update, I went to counseling today and got a formal diagnosis of PTSD. I don't know that getting a service dog right now would be the right thing to do, but I am exploring it as an option. Currently, I am much healthier than I had described above. I am able to work and am heavily involved in multiply sports, so being able to care for a dog is not a concern.

I appreciate you all taking the time to read and reply.

 

[anonymous]

If you're in a better place than you described, its pretty much a better option to not get a service dog because its always (yes, ALWAYS) better to be able to regulate your anxiety internally rather than with external assistance. If you need a service dog, that means the dog goes with you everywhere....yes, everywhere, and not just when you feel like taking him/her out. In the field of nursing, that will likely create a hardship in terms of finding a job. Of course there are some nursing jobs which are indeed dog friendly, but many are not.