Using Animals in Therapy and as Guides

The rate of including our pawed friends in our lives and homes is increasing both in our country and all over the world. Especially when we look at the communication of children and the elderly with animals, we can easily observe how close ties they have between them. On the other hand, today this form of communication is not limited to just having a pet and providing care for it; We can also see that relationships with animals make many psychological, social and physiological contributions to humans. Studies in this area have shown that people who have pets have more developed empathy skills and are less stressed in daily life; It shows that especially for people living alone, it reduces the feeling of loneliness and related depressive thoughts, and even some animals encourage people to do sports, especially because of their outdoor needs.

Scientists, who examine the positive effects of animals on humans in our daily life, have started to evaluate these positive effects in the field of health, and Animal Assisted Therapy (HDT) programs have been established with the psychological benefits of animals in humans. These programs aim to facilitate the rehabilitation and treatment of patients with a chronic illness who need hospital treatment for a long time, and to obtain optimum results from the treatment process. In this direction, the first bond we will develop with a pet is unconditional love and acceptance. The relationships we develop with our paternal friends, which allow us to express all our feelings and thoughts openly without being criticized, judged or waiting for advice, provide us with a safe and peaceful environment for attachment, which is one of the basic building blocks of our lives. And also; It has been observed that the self-worth of people who see that they are competent enough to meet all their needs by protecting and feeding them, with the thought of taking responsibility for a living thing, increase and they are more involved in life.

In recent years, animal-assisted therapy methods have been used in some schools, hospitals, nursing homes and prisons around the world and their number has been increasing. crochet is visible. It is seen that children, adolescents and adults with behavioral disorders are very effective in increasing positive social behaviors such as protectionism, compassion, responsibility, cooperation, respect for adult authority and reducing aggression in the therapy process. In addition to these, studies show that having a pet provides social support in itself, facilitates meeting new people, increases and improves the quality of existing social relationships such as family relationships, and increases physical activities. On the other hand, with the bond you establish with your pet; It is seen that dopamine, serotonin and endorphin releases associated with positive emotions and thoughts are provided, the immune system is strengthened, lower cholesterol levels are observed, and these relations are also soothing because they reduce the concentration on the symptoms of psychological disorders.

In summary, established with animals. Considering the positive and beneficial effects that relationships have on us, we can say that having a pet will positively affect our lives in many ways, without the need for therapy or treatment. Considering that our children will benefit most from these positive effects, it plays an important role to instill a love of animals in our children from a young age.

Read: 0

yodax