Animal-assisted therapy (AAT) helps many people with substance use disorder (SUD) or mental health disorders heal from intense pain and trauma. Animals have a unique way of being nonjudgmental and consistently supportive. Yet, it’s more than just those minutes of having your face licked by your dog, or a purring cat settled onto your lap.
Animals have been a part of healing in various forms for centuries and with consistent benefits. Having a pet at home could help, but there are some factors to consider before you bring this additional responsibility into your life in addiction recovery.
What Can AAT Do for You?
Why consider adding an animal to your treatment regimen? In the right environment, animals provide a wide range of benefits to individuals. One benefit is stimulating the pleasure receptors in the brain. When this happens, it releases mood-enhancement hormones into the bloodstream, helping you feel better and have a more positive outlook.
During a therapy session with a pet, your therapist will help you navigate what you’re feeling. For many people with addiction and dependency, this type of one-on-one interaction with pets can translate into significant changes:
- Pets reduce stress. Stress is a part of addiction recovery. Pets don’t change the stress, but they do give your brain a break from its impact.
- Pets provide companionship. You don’t have to feel alone or that your battle is too much. With a pet, you have someone to deal with the day’s challenges.
- Pets encourage you to build responsibility. It is not only your life you need to manage, but now you’re also caring for another life. That sense of responsibility can be critically important to building value and substance into your day.
- Pets help trigger a sense of happiness and calm. After a long day, just the body warmth of a dog or cat by your legs offers a sense of calm, slowing your heart rate and allowing you to feel physically better.
- Pets get you moving. They require time and attention, walks in the park, and playtime. The exercise your pet gets also helps you get exercise.
- Pets can help you learn to trust again. That may not seem like something that’s holding you back in your addiction recovery right now. Think about it. You might have trusted others to help you avoid bad decisions. You might have expected someone to be there when you had a bad day. Once trust is broken, it’s quite hard to be able to lend that trust out again.
Your pet helps you to do just that. It could help you take back your life after addiction.
Make Careful Decisions About Pets in Addiction Recovery
There are numerous benefits to having pets as a part of your addiction recovery. However, before you take on this challenge, there are several considerations.
Start with Therapy Sessions
Work with your treatment therapist to use AAT. Consider having an animal present while you’re in a counseling session. This is especially important if you’re not yet familiar with interacting with pets. That way, after your hour-long session, the pet can go home.
This slow introduction is very helpful during your first year in addiction recovery. It provides a way for you to ease into the changes you want to create.
Consider the Cost Implications of a Pet
Pets require many of the same investments as children and adults. You’ll need to feed and provide shelter for them. You also need to cover the cost of vet bills. Many people also need to consider the cost of caring for a pet that becomes ill.
Also, note that you may need to have homeowner’s insurance or renter’s insurance that includes protection for your pet. Pets can be a danger to others.
Determine If You Have the Time for a Pet
Pets take time, which means you’ll need to be able to handle all of the following tasks each day:
- Feed the animal
- Let it out or clean the litter box
- Feed it at least twice a day
- Ensure your animal has water
- Clean up after the animal
- Interact with it
All of these tasks can be enjoyable, but they also require you to set aside time. Pets demand attention and cannot just hang out on the couch without you. They need interaction to stay healthy. Be realistic about your ability to care for a pet before you jump in. Consider “borrowing” a pet from a friend for the weekend to see what the process might be like for you.
Getting Help for Addiction Is a Critical Step That’s Multi-Faceted
There’s not a single treatment plan for addiction. For some people, animal-based therapy can be healing and supportive. It provides you with a way to work through the pain you feel to build a stronger future.
If you’re ready to begin a path to health, contact Iron Bridge Recovery Center in Chester, VA, today to learn more.
