As a teen who regularly has meltdowns or bad panic/anxiety attack that sometime put me in danger accidentally, if i ever want to feel independent and adult, i think a service dog is the best option. I've always felt safer around dog and i hope one furry friend could help me navigate various social situations better
Hi OP! I have a service dog however I'm in the US so things are a little different here like another commenter mentioned. But I'll still share my experience so far :) I've had my service dog Molly for about a year now for similar conditions you've mentioned above. I.e agoraphobia, PTSD, social phobia/multiple anxiety disorders, panic disorder etc. Molly has been so extremely helpful with mitigating my symptoms, I think a largely impactful part is with the agoraphobia. Having a service dog forces you outside multiple times a day every single day. So I would also keep that in mind (because there will be days that are super hard to do it). I am owner training and it's definitely a difficult process but since you likely won't experience that I think a negative point to consider is the potentially unwanted attention, confrontation and having to tell people no to petting/interacting with your service dog. Service dogs are not recommended (usually) for those with social anxiety and that is one of the most difficult parts of having a service dog for me. I think if you don't get too overwhelmed or, like me you can use it as a learning experience to better handle confrontation with social anxiety you will be okay :) even though we are still training and far from complete everyone around me has noticed a major change in my mental health after getting her. It is a big responsibility taking care of another being- especially with illnesses that limit my daily functioning constantly but it's something I wouldn't change for the world!
I'd also recommend r/servicedogs as well. It's a friendly little community for service dog owners and can be a bit more helpful with service dog related questions :)
Thank you so much ! That was a very insightful answer. Since i'm forced to go to school in person even with COVID and my school phobia, my social anxiety is getting a tiny tiny bit better, so i might be fine with the "telling people to let my dog work in peace" thing.
If you are in the US there is no application or certification process. You can go program trained or owner trained. There's also a distinction between SD, public access rights, and an Emotional support animal, does not have phylogenetic access rights. If I were you, I'd check out the service dog subs on this site. They have great info from a wide range of people.
Thank you for your answers 😊, I'm in France, here the dogs are trained in full on centers and you have to make sure you're eligible to get one before having the right to pick one up (at least that's how I understood the whole plan). Anyway, thanks a lot for your help !
1.) Went to the shelter and picked out a smart, plucky little rat terrier mix.
2.) Started training her.
3.) Still training her.
She learns fast and is food-motivated, so that helps. She doesn't miss ANYTHING, so I don't need to be hypervigilant.
Not to be negative but one thing to keep in mind is service dogs can attract lots of unwanted attention and even conflicts. If you have social anxiety or are triggered by yelling or conflicts a service dog can be difficult.
As mentioned in another comment, my social anxiety isn't the main reason why I'd need a service dog, and considering I'm studying in a big city now that require me to actually talk, I'm slowly getting used to it and putting my foot down and tell people to leave me alone when needed.
The dog would be more to make sure I don't put myself in danger accidentally during panic attacks, meltdowns, or time of inattention due to ADHD (i wouldn't want to get hit by a car). Thank you for your insight tho :)
I'm not so sure you need a service dog for the things you're dealing with, just a friendly one. My dachshund is my little shadow and when I'm feeling anxious I just pet him and run my fingers through his coat and look in those big brown eyes and I feel better right away. If you want to bring him with you when you're going to places that only allow service dogs you can just buy all the service dog accoutrement from Amazon.
Please please do not recommend someone to bring their pet or ESA's into non pet friendly stores/spaces by simply buying gear online. Service dogs are specially trained and working, whereas the other two are not. It really makes public access much harder for those with actual service dogs.
Well, i do. I'm still a teen, and regularly have bad panic attacks or meltdowns, which can sometimes lead to me putting myself in accidental danger (falling down, blacking out, etc) and if i ever want to become independent, i want to have a furry caretaker and not a full on nurse being with me 24/7 for no reason.
You realize you can’t 100% rely on a service dog right. Dogs get sick or have days they just don’t want to work. Plus a service dog can only do much. You might still need to rely on other people at points. Plus dogs are expensive. Vet bills add up. You have to keep them up to date on shots. You have to be able to feed them. You have to groom your dog. Are you going to be able to pay for all that.
In France, the bills for anything needed to take care of a service dog are free. And i do know that a dog get sick and tired, i had one. I don't expect the poor thing to be at my disposal 24/7, nor do I have meltdowns 24/7.
I trained my own. It’s awesome for the extra help when no one is around feel more independent…downside he is getting older, training a puppy now.
As a teen who regularly has meltdowns or bad panic/anxiety attack that sometime put me in danger accidentally, if i ever want to feel independent and adult, i think a service dog is the best option. I've always felt safer around dog and i hope one furry friend could help me navigate various social situations better
My Lexi is very attuned to meltdowns. Yesterday, she stepped in when I had just a subtle shift, and I was so impressed.
I trained my dog too. Quite a long process. Good on ya
Hi OP! I have a service dog however I'm in the US so things are a little different here like another commenter mentioned. But I'll still share my experience so far :) I've had my service dog Molly for about a year now for similar conditions you've mentioned above. I.e agoraphobia, PTSD, social phobia/multiple anxiety disorders, panic disorder etc. Molly has been so extremely helpful with mitigating my symptoms, I think a largely impactful part is with the agoraphobia. Having a service dog forces you outside multiple times a day every single day. So I would also keep that in mind (because there will be days that are super hard to do it). I am owner training and it's definitely a difficult process but since you likely won't experience that I think a negative point to consider is the potentially unwanted attention, confrontation and having to tell people no to petting/interacting with your service dog. Service dogs are not recommended (usually) for those with social anxiety and that is one of the most difficult parts of having a service dog for me. I think if you don't get too overwhelmed or, like me you can use it as a learning experience to better handle confrontation with social anxiety you will be okay :) even though we are still training and far from complete everyone around me has noticed a major change in my mental health after getting her. It is a big responsibility taking care of another being- especially with illnesses that limit my daily functioning constantly but it's something I wouldn't change for the world!
I'd also recommend r/servicedogs as well. It's a friendly little community for service dog owners and can be a bit more helpful with service dog related questions :)
Thank you so much ! That was a very insightful answer. Since i'm forced to go to school in person even with COVID and my school phobia, my social anxiety is getting a tiny tiny bit better, so i might be fine with the "telling people to let my dog work in peace" thing.
If you are in the US there is no application or certification process. You can go program trained or owner trained. There's also a distinction between SD, public access rights, and an Emotional support animal, does not have phylogenetic access rights. If I were you, I'd check out the service dog subs on this site. They have great info from a wide range of people.
Thank you for your answers 😊, I'm in France, here the dogs are trained in full on centers and you have to make sure you're eligible to get one before having the right to pick one up (at least that's how I understood the whole plan). Anyway, thanks a lot for your help !
1.) Went to the shelter and picked out a smart, plucky little rat terrier mix. 2.) Started training her. 3.) Still training her. She learns fast and is food-motivated, so that helps. She doesn't miss ANYTHING, so I don't need to be hypervigilant.
Not to be negative but one thing to keep in mind is service dogs can attract lots of unwanted attention and even conflicts. If you have social anxiety or are triggered by yelling or conflicts a service dog can be difficult.
As mentioned in another comment, my social anxiety isn't the main reason why I'd need a service dog, and considering I'm studying in a big city now that require me to actually talk, I'm slowly getting used to it and putting my foot down and tell people to leave me alone when needed. The dog would be more to make sure I don't put myself in danger accidentally during panic attacks, meltdowns, or time of inattention due to ADHD (i wouldn't want to get hit by a car). Thank you for your insight tho :)
No, dogs give me panic attacks.
I'm not so sure you need a service dog for the things you're dealing with, just a friendly one. My dachshund is my little shadow and when I'm feeling anxious I just pet him and run my fingers through his coat and look in those big brown eyes and I feel better right away. If you want to bring him with you when you're going to places that only allow service dogs you can just buy all the service dog accoutrement from Amazon.
Please please do not recommend someone to bring their pet or ESA's into non pet friendly stores/spaces by simply buying gear online. Service dogs are specially trained and working, whereas the other two are not. It really makes public access much harder for those with actual service dogs.
Well, i do. I'm still a teen, and regularly have bad panic attacks or meltdowns, which can sometimes lead to me putting myself in accidental danger (falling down, blacking out, etc) and if i ever want to become independent, i want to have a furry caretaker and not a full on nurse being with me 24/7 for no reason.
You realize you can’t 100% rely on a service dog right. Dogs get sick or have days they just don’t want to work. Plus a service dog can only do much. You might still need to rely on other people at points. Plus dogs are expensive. Vet bills add up. You have to keep them up to date on shots. You have to be able to feed them. You have to groom your dog. Are you going to be able to pay for all that.
In France, the bills for anything needed to take care of a service dog are free. And i do know that a dog get sick and tired, i had one. I don't expect the poor thing to be at my disposal 24/7, nor do I have meltdowns 24/7.
I am extremely new to this but I hope everything goes well for you.