Animals can bring us happiness and companionship. Animals can also provide emotional support to people suffering from mental illnesses. These animal companions are known as emotional support animals (ESAs), and their popularity has grown in recent years.
Definition
An emotional support animal is an animal companion that benefits a person with a disability. The animal’s purpose is to provide companionship and support, thereby alleviating at least one aspect of the disability.
Although dogs are the most common emotional support animal, cats are also quite common. Other animals, such as miniature horses, can be used as ESAs
Benefits
Why would someone select to have an emotional support animal? Animals have long been thought to provide significant mental health benefits, according to research. According to one study, having a pet improves mental health by fostering emotional connectivity and assisting people in times of crisis.
Other advantages that emotional support animals may provide include:
• Less stress. Petting an animal can persuade a relaxation response and recover mood.
• Help with trauma. Pets can provide comfort to people going through difficult times, including those who have been through trauma.
• Better physical health. Emotional support animals have been shown in studies to help lower blood pressure, lower respiration rates, and improve pain tolerance.
• Feelings of loneliness are reduced. Animals can provide company, which is especially important for living alone and suffering from unhappiness or anxiety symptoms.
• Mutual love and care. Caring for an emotional support animal can also help people feel more purposeful. Animals not only give unconditional love and companionship, but they also demand care and love in return, which can be emotionally rewarding.
Research
It’s easy to say that animals can help people become calmer, happier, and more fulfilled. But are emotional support animals any dissimilar from other pets? So far, the research has yielded no conclusive results. While some argue that emotional support animals may have positive effects, evidence for their therapeutic effectiveness is limited.
For example, research has not demonstrated that support animals provide significantly more benefits than any other type of pet. According to a 2016 study published in the journal Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, it is unclear whether emotional support animals have any therapeutic effects in addition to the general benefits that animals provide.
For more research visit https://myesadoctor.com/
Service Animals vs Emotional Support Animals
While emotional support and service animals have some similarities, they also have significant differences. Emotional support animals are intended to be companions and sources of comfort. On the other hand, service animals help people who have disabilities by performing specific tasks.
Service animals have been specially trained to provide a service to someone who has a disability. Sensory, physical, intellectual, psychiatric, or mental disabilities are examples of impairments. A service animal may alert a person to a sound, guide a person down the street, press an elevator button, retrieve items, alert others or stand guard if the individual is having a seizure, or remind them to take their medication.
Controversy
While there is some evidence that emotional support animals are beneficial, not everyone agrees that they are always required. Some mental health professionals believe that service animals are overused. 4
Every year, the number of emotional support animals appears to increase. Between 2016 and 2017, United Airlines, one of the largest airline carriers in the United States, reported a 75% increase in emotional support animals flying on the airline.
Airlines, other businesses, and federal regulators are now considering additional ESA-related rules, such as:
• Restricting the number of species that can be used as support animals.
• Requiring owners to submit documentation proving their use of an emotional support animal in advance.
• Declaring that the animal has been housebroken and is safe to be around other people.
The increased demand for ESAs can also put therapists in a bind. Patients are increasingly requesting letters of documentation from their psychologist, therapist, or doctor to support their emotional support animal needs.
Considerations for Ethical Behavior
Many psychologists and therapists are perplexed by the law’s ambiguity. Do they write a letter for a patient who may or may not have a genuine need, or do they refuse the request and risk losing the patient?
Some patients may become enraged if a therapist or doctor denies their request for a documentation letter. This poses an ethical quandary for therapists. Should they write a letter to ensure that a patient stays in treatment even if they do not believe a support animal is required?
In the absence of such guidelines, a slew of online businesses has sprung up, promising to deliver a diagnosis as well as an ESA documentation letter. Many of these websites claim to provide a diagnosis and letter of documentation in less than 24 hours for less than $100.
Because of this type of law abuse, many airlines now require an ESA documentation letter and the name and contact information of the mental health professional who provided the diagnosis to be submitted in advance of the aeronautical.
Verywell’s Opinion
While research has yet to demonstrate the long-term effects of emotional support animals on symptoms of psychological conditions, you may find a support animal to be a helpful and rewarding addition to your current treatment plan. A pet can provide companionship and support if you suffer from stress, anxiety, trauma, or another type of mental health condition. Consult with your care provider to see if an emotional support animal would benefit your specific situation.
MyESADoctor is well-known for the quality of care provided by compassionate physicians and therapists.
MyESADoctor’s mission is to provide the highest level of emotional and psychological care to every patient who seeks assistance. Whether you need an ESA letter to rent an apartment or house with your ESA or to fly with your ESA, our physicians will assess your emotional or mental state and then issue a legitimate ESA letter if necessary.
People from all walks of life come to MyESADoctor because we want to help them live and travel with their ESAs.
Our way of thinking
MyESADoctor goes beyond the traditional clinic model by allowing patients to receive the care they require from the comfort of their own homes. With our online telemedicine portal, MyESADoctor bridges the gap for patients, allowing them to seek help instantly from where they live and work.
MyESADoctor has a large number of highly trained and experienced therapists in emotional or mental health. They are experts at evaluating and recommending treatments based on the medical condition of their patients. Our caring physicians and mental health professionals have firsthand knowledge of the therapeutic benefits of many of our patients. We are pleased to provide this online service to patients across the country, and we are pleased to be a supporter of therapy through support animals.
Our Objective
We recognise that our country is in the grip of a mental health crisis. Our mission is to assist patients in alleviating pain, recovering from mental illnesses, and maximising the therapeutic benefits of support animals. Regarding psychological disorders, stress, and other mental health issues, we believe that animal therapy works better than pharmaceuticals.
Our Vision
Our vision is simple but clear: to be the most trusted source for obtaining an ESA letter online in the United States. We believe telemedicine is here to stay, and we intend to use it to increase access to care significantly. Everyone should have easy access to a medical health professional. We are on the verge of accomplishing this by combining our expertise with cutting-edge technology.
