3 Ways an Emotional Support Animal Can Help Fight Addiction

Unfortunately, addiction is very prevalent in our society today. There are so many things that cause people to fall into addiction. Traumatic events, accidental exposure, and medical dependency are just some of the things that people experience that lead them to addiction.

About 53% of U.S. adults report having one or more family members who suffer from a drinking problem. That’s over half of the nation stating that they know at least one person with an addiction to alcohol. How do we stop this?

Believe it or not, emotional support animals are an amazing form of alcoholism treatment. These animals can actually help their owners beat addiction. Here are three ways that people who suffer from addiction can benefit from having an emotional support animal.

Coping Mechanism
When stressors are present in the life of someone suffering from addiction, their emotional support animal acts as a coping mechanism. They help provide perspective for their owners. Because of the stigma that comes along with addiction, many people who suffer avoid going to get treatment. Too often, they fall into their substance abuse habit to reduce their stress. This can be greatly reduced with an emotional support animal. The owner can use pet care or playtime with the animal as a form of coping with stress instead.

Socializing
When people go out and see a dog or other animal, they usually want to stop and talk to the owner, pet the dog, etc. This helps the owner not isolate themselves. Isolation is very dangerous for someone with an addiction. Taking care of the animal also gets the owner out of the house.

Therapy
Emotional support animals offer amazing therapy to their owners. They help their owners avoid relapse because their owners know that they are dependent on them. People have to consider the well-being of their animals, which gives them something to think about other than their addiction. If the owner relapses, harm could come to their animal, and most owners would not want to risk hurting this animal that they’ve grown to love.

If you or someone you know is suffering from an addiction, consider getting an emotional support animal.