I was curious to see how people would react when I told them we needed to put our dog on anti-anxiety medication. Mostly, they laughed. It is a reminder to me of why people don't want to seek treatment when they have a panic disorder or mental heath issue. It wasn't hilarious when the dogs went on thyroid medication. We like to laugh at all of our problems, but we know that needing to even out the brain's chemicals is no different than diabetes or hypothyroidism. We are not ashamed. We tried behavioral modification training and it did not work. I'll spare you the details regarding all of that. So our wish for our selves and all of you: Try other stuff first, but everyone - if you need medication, go take it. It's not a big deal.
So we got some sleep last night. When we went to bed, Lucy's initial objections were worse than normal. But after that, she did not pant as loudly or bark. On prior nights, she panted so hard, we could hear her through closed doors on the opposite side of the house. But last night, she dug at her bed and panted until midnight, without any barking. Since she would frantically protest until 4 am previously, this is a great improvement.
I was curious to see how people would react when I told them we needed to put our dog on anti-anxiety medication. Mostly, they laughed. It is a reminder to me of why people don't want to seek treatment when they have a panic disorder or mental heath issue. It wasn't hilarious when the dogs went on thyroid medication. We like to laugh at all of our problems, but we know that needing to even out the brain's chemicals is no different than diabetes or hypothyroidism. We are not ashamed. We tried behavioral modification training and it did not work. I'll spare you the details regarding all of that. So our wish for our selves and all of you: Try other stuff first, but everyone - if you need medication, go take it. It's not a big deal.
2 Comments
9/18/2015 06:07:35 am
It's great to hear that meds are already making a difference. We went through a similar situation with one of our cats. Medication made a world of difference for her, and for us. As long as Dorothy gets her pill in the morning (5mg of Prozac, generic), life is good.
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Molly n Lucy's Mom
9/19/2015 07:57:09 am
Thanks Connie! glad you found a solution for Dorothy. All of your vacation pictures looked great. Wish I could have one of those bear claws. Everyone, if you click on where it says "Connie in Hartwood", it links to Connie's blog.
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