Mental Health And Finding The Best Form Of Treatment

In the field of therapy, there are numerous of therapy available out there for different type of individuals and situations as well. There is one type of therapy that usually contains people and animal, it is animal-assisted therapy is a therapeutic approach that brings animals and individuals with physical and/or emotional needs together to perform the therapy. Animal-assisted therapy tend to be focused on individuals either children or elderly for them to be able to connect with the animal thus feeling comfortable talking with the therapist. Pet therapy works for all ages, whether sick or not (Lanchnit, 2011). Although, this paper, most of the focus is on animal-assisted therapy towards children using dogs.

In an article published by Time magazine, they stated “40,000 troops have been physically wounded in Afghanistan and Iraq, but 10 times as many exhibit symptoms of PTSD.” This means four-hundred thousand troops are still suffering from these symptoms. In the Time article, it talks about how scientists learned that dogs can lower these symptoms in veterans. These scientist have proven this by using many individuals cases and comparing the intensity of their symptoms without therapy dogs to the patients with therapy dogs. Although many people believe dogs cannot lower symptoms of disorders, scientists like those interviewed for the Time article are proving them wrong. Therapy dogs positively affect war veterans by lowering their Post Traumatic

This article summarizes how post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) effects soldiers returning from combat zones and how service dogs help relieve PTSD symptoms. After the success of an award-winning program created for at risk teens, Rick Yount, a social worker and certified service dog trainer, created the first Warrior dog-training program. The Warrior dog-training program was designed to be a safe and effective

Dog aided therapy in a combat theater began in that same year. The dogs each had a value of $25,000 invested in them for their training process. The foremost service dogs underwent training for two years valued expensively at $25000 to $50000 per year (Ritchie and Amaker, 2012). The research focuses on investigating the significance and input of service dogs towards benefiting veterans and service members diagnosed with or at risk of PTSD. The impact and input service dogs offer to the service men and women deployed in

War and combat experiences have a way of changing lives in dramatic ways. Deployments can range in length but experiences during those times can forever change a soldier. For veterans, the consequences of combat can be long lasting. According to a study done by the RAND corporation, “post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depression, are specific disorders that have been shown to be extremely prevalent among soldiers returning from combat” (“RAND Assesses Post-Deployment Health-Related Needs Of Iraq Veterans.”). Effective treatments for PTSD exist however, no one method or therapeutic technique is appropriate for every client. For this reason new approaches for treatment are being tested. Positive results are being seen with the new treatment of PTSD called canine assisted therapy. Every veteran should get the opportunity to find a treatment that works best for his/her condition. That is why we need a bill that will help this problem. Therefore, a bill to establish canine therapy programs for veterans in the medical centers of the Department of Veterans Affairs

Although medication and psychotherapy help PTSD patients reduce their symptoms, it remains a difficult disorder to treat. Many veterans suffering from PTSD see the disorder as a weakness and either fail to report their symptoms, go undiagnosed, or they drop out of their therapy (Glintborg). So, it remains necessary to find alternative therapies, and integrating support animals remains a viable option.

Brett Duval, a veteran bomb dog handler contracted to the United States Army, returned home after serving two tours in Iraq with the diagnosis of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) (Duval, 2016). After witnessing her son’s difficulty adjusting back to civilian life, Shari Duval began extensive research on animal-assisted therapy for the maintenance and treatment of disorders such as PTSD and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). In 2011, Duval created K9s For Warriors (K9s), a non-profit organization dedicated to providing trained service dogs to active duty service members and veterans to assist in regaining comfort and independence in the civilian sector. Their overarching mission is to “...provide service canines to warriors suffering from Post-traumatic stress disability, traumatic brain injury and/or military sexual trauma as a result of military service post 9/11. [With the ultimate goal] to empower them to return to civilian life with dignity and independence.” (K9s for Warriors Handbook, 2016). Duval established this agency with the desire to grow the conservative therapies provided to service members now to non-traditional alternatives and to combat the significant consequences of untreated psychological trauma plaguing the military today.

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, anxiety, or depression, amongst many other disabilities deserve to be acknowledged because of the medical advancements in the past several years which support the effectiveness of service animals. These disabilities affect the everyday lives of thousands of people throughout the United States, which is why I believe that service animals can be a beneficial component that may boost a person’s endurance. In the article, Service Dog Training Program for Treatment of PTSD in Service Members, a study written with the United States Army, results concluded that service animals were deemed effective in their practices. The article reports that veterans and service members had an “increase in patience, impulse control, [and] emotional regulation” (Yount, et al.). As a helpful practice for disabled persons, it is a civil injustice to discriminate against a person with a service dog. To neglect a disabled person’s accessibility to basic public services in modern society is a violation of human rights. I think that the lack of accommodations for service animals and their handlers is an overlooked issue in society, which is why I believe that my research is a relevant issue in modern

military and government, brings forward in her article, that in “the 2010 Defense Authorization Act required VA to study the effectiveness of service dogs for PTSD” (Kime n.p.). Kime stated in her article that the “VA has said there isn’t enough scientific evidence regarding their effectiveness for that purpose to warrant benefits coverage” (n.p.). “And when it comes to PTSD, VA officials say they must use proven treatments” (n.p.). “VA’s original study on the effectiveness of service dogs for PTSD”, in 2010 “was suspended in 2012 because it amid concerns over the animals care at the facilities, as well as the dogs’ training” (Kime n.p.). Rick Nauert who has his Ph.D., had an M.D. say “One size does not fit all,” said Ira Katz, M.D. “senior consultant for mental health services in the office of patient service in the Department of Veterans Affairs” (n.p.). “Across the board, more research is needed on evidence-based treatment to provide a broad range of options”

This article appeared in a scientifically reviewed, Psychology Central News, in 2010, making this a relatively credible source. Also this article is a fairly recent one, from 2010 and it relates to what the topic is about. Rick Nauert has a Ph.D. from The University of Texas at Austin in information science focused on health care informatics, health administration, health education and health policy and also has over 30 years of experience in clinical, administrative and academic healthcare. I included this article because it addresses how much psychiatric service dogs help military veterans with their PTSD symptoms and help cut down on their medications. In fact, “according to the Army Surgeon General’s special assistant for mental health,

The survivors’ quality of life is greatly diminished because they tend to suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Survivors with this disorder undergo physiological and behavioral changes, and develop detrimental coping mechanisms. Self-destructive behaviors such as self-harming, eating disorders, and substance abuse are prevalent among survivors of sexual abuse. Other deleterious effects arising in survivors are flashbacks, sleeping disorders, nightmares, mood and personality disorders, and heightened reactivity to stimuli. When someone who has experienced sexual abuse deals with the aftermath of their trauma, it then becomes a daily struggle to survive. The journey of healing from the trauma of sexual abuse can sometimes be long and painful. When a survivor seeks therapy in order to overcome the trauma, the assistance of an animal has been shown to reduce physical and emotional symptoms by 82%. The presence of an animal that has been trained to assist in therapy helps to decrease anxiety levels, lower the stress hormone cortisol, lessen depression, and reduce the need for self-isolation. Talking to an animal lowers blood pressure and heart rate. Petting a friendly, calm animal raises oxytocin and serotonin levels. The most significant outcome for the survivor who has had animal assisted therapy is greatly improved quality of

In today’s society, service dogs are very critical for current U.S soldiers and veterans that deal with PTSD and stress disorder especially saving lives within the Military field. Service dogs are not being noticed by individuals in a world that is full of technological influence because there are so many other little things to preoccupy their time. The service of these particular dogs offer are very beneficial especially to soldier that have PSTD and also reducing stress. Carl Ringberg, a current Missouri army veteran, Luthy, Air Force veteran, and Brett Simon, a current army solider had benefited from a service dog. These particular Individuals found positive results while having a service dog by their side and this service dogs completely

Animal-assisted therapy (AAT) is a fairly old practice, but it has just recently drawn a lot of attention and interest. The Delta Society (as cited by Nebbe, n.d.) defines animal-assisted therapy as the use of an animal in a goal oriented intervention. AAT is provided and documented by professionals. Furthermore, it is designed to promote advancements in social, emotional, physical, and/or cognitive operation (Nebbe, n.d.). It is also important to note that animal-assisted therapy should always be an adjunctive intervention and not in isolation of other services (Fitchett, Granger, Helmer, Kogan, & Young, 1999). Almost any animal can be used in AAT as long as it is a pleasant, sociable animal. However, before animal-assisted therapy

A woman with posttraumatic stress disorder said, “It was such a breakthrough. I think I’m a very different person having had these experiences” (Meinersmann et al., 2008, p. 39), while discussing her therapy program. However, no traditional therapy program brought this response; instead, it was equine-assisted psychotherapy (EAP). Equine assisted psychotherapy is a form of treatment, which uses horses as facilitators to improve mental health. Though some people dismiss EAP as a developing approach, horses may offer opportunities to heal that human therapists cannot. First, the horses encourage engagement in therapy sessions through the opportunities they offer and the equine environment (Bachi et al., 2012; Masini, 2010). Second, horses may

Since the 9th century, animal therapy has been active in different fields. The human and animal interaction has a special connection that can help people emotionally. According to the website of Dr. Carol R. Hughes, a licensed therapist, the interaction has the ability to “heal and assist” humans with mental disorders and emotional problems and also “dwells incredible healing powers” (Hughes, p. 1). Sigmund Freud, a well known neurologist “felt that dogs had a special sense that allows them to judge a person 's character” (Coren). Dogs have even been known to be man’s best friend. “Canines respond to emotions in the voice in the same way that humans do.” (Spencer) This shows