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Trauma Therapy

Mental Health Assistance Dogs

Answered by Rob Danzman, MS, NCC, LPC, MS, NCC, LCMHC

Question

I have PTSD from a rape and violent assault last year (I spent a week in the ICU). Now some days I don’t even want to leave my house and on bad days a trip to the corner store is terrifying. I have also lost my job and my boyfriend because I can’t get my head together. I was reading that some soldiers coming home from Afghanistan are using service dogs to help with PTSD. Are these dogs available for non military people? Would a service dog help someone like me? I am desperate. I am on 150mgs of Zoloft and 5 mgs of Xanax a day but it doesn’t help that much.

First of all, I'm so sorry to hear about that terrible experience you had. No one deserves to be treated that way. While it sounds like you have physically healed, the next big task is to hear your mind. What you are looking for is commonly called a Mental Health Assistance Dog. Here is a link to a program in Seattle that probably has what you are looking for. Ultimately, the intervention is less important than the ability to leave your home and live your life without fear. I would encourage you to also consider joining a DBT Group. You have a very good chance of finding a group that fits your needs depending on what part of the country you live in. 

About the Expert

Rob Danzman, MS, NCC, LPC

MS, NCC, LCMHC

Bloomington, United States of America

Specialties

Anger Management, Child or Adolescent Issues, Divorce, Compulsive Disorders, Other, Anxiety or Fears, ADHD, Finding Your Purpose in Life, Gay Lesbian Issues, Child Assessments, Psychological Testing & Evaluation, Parenting, Thinking Disorders, Addiction or Substance Abuse, Mood Disorders, Loss or Grief, Dissociative Disorders, EMDR, Testing/Assessment, Autism, Trauma and PTSD, Personality Disorders, Impulse Control Disorders, Relationship Issues, Women, Eating Disorders, Depression

License

my_license #39003170A

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