Category Archives: Panic Attack

Anxiety, Experience, Medical Alert, Military, Mobility, Navy, Panic Attack, San Antonio, Texas, Veteran, Wounded Warrior

Denise and SDiT Sandy

From our trainer, Brenda, who is a paraplegic in a wheelchair and specializes in working with our other clients in wheelchairs, who has been working with Denise and her SDIT, Sandy!

Brenda writes:

“After several training sessions, I went through a mock Public Access Test to show me that Sandy was ready for her formal test. We did the following:

1) Sandy “loaded” onto the bus perfectly. I had also observed her loading into Denise’s provider’s truck Friday without hesitation.
2) Sandy “unloaded” off the bus perfectly.
3) Denise demonstrated “sit” and “stay” without a problem. Sandy did not pay attention to the food on the floor at McDonald’s and has never had an issue at home when Denise eats. We did not go to the grocery store, but I have seen in the past that Sandy has no issues with shopping carts in the store. Denise does not want anyone petting Sandy.
4) Denise demonstrated “down” with little problem. At 1st, Sandy was very excited and wasn’t focused, but Denise quickly got her full attention when she brought out the can of Pet Corrector! Sandy then laid down right away and stayed. Sandy laid right down in McDonald’s, too, and did not bother with food that was already on the floor. She did not break the down position when people walked by.
5) Denise and Sandy went through the door at her apartment and at McDonald’s with Sandy heeling just in front of her chair, out of the way of it and not too far ahead. Sandy also demonstrated that she knows her directions.
6) When we were going to and from the bus stop and restaurant, I observed that Sandy heeled perfectly next to Denise’s chair (or just in front of as needed), and there was slack in the leash so I know she wasn’t pulling. Traffic and noise do not bother Sandy. She stops when Denise stops.
7) Sandy executed “go through” perfectly and waits for Denise once she is through.
8) Sandy stays right next to Denise at all times.
9 & 10) For safety reasons, I did not have her demonstrate these; I feel more comfortable waiting to do these with someone who can walk just in case things go wrong. However, Denise told me of a situation last week where when they were getting dropped off by ViaTrans. Sandy saw a cat when the door opened, and Denise did not have good hold of the leash. Sandy took off after the cat and Denise said “NO Sandy! Come back here!” Sandy stopped right away and went back to Denise. Sandy did the “sit/stay/come” combo perfectly in the house.
11) I have done this in the past without Sandy even flinching, and she wasn’t distracted by noise or people on our outing today – so I didn’t drop anything. It also wasn’t feasible to do this rolling on the sidewalk. We only went to McDonald’s and not HEB too, as this would have been too much for Denise today and I didn’t want to be redundant on things I know that Sandy is perfect with and will pass on her official test.

I did do some wheelchair troubleshooting. There was an issue as far as the bus one time; Sandy did not have a place to sit in front of Denise’s chair, out of the aisle. I saw this in the past, and had been thinking of what we could do. I suggested that Denise make sure her chair was as far back as possible and to swing out the leg rest that was on the window side, put her foot on the floor to give Sandy more room to sit for the ride, and also to swing out the leg rest on the aisle side like a door when Sandy gets in and out to make it easier on her. Denise didn’t even know that her leg rests COULD swing out and I’m not sure that you would have known either or how to do it. Sandy was still hesitant to get into that spot, but I think it’s just from her past experience of having no room and being uncomfortable, so I advised Denise to be ready with treats to coax her there in the future until Sandy catches on that it is easier and she now has more room to sit comfortably. I made it clear to Denise that I am still here for her if she has problems and to call me so I can do more troubleshooting. I believe that once Sandy realizes that adjustments have been made and she has a big enough spot to sit every time, Sandy will go right into her spot without hesitation and it will be a faster process!

They are ready for their Public Access Test next session!

Panic Attack, PTSD

Stefanie and Damsel

From our trainer, Andrew, who met with new client, Stefanie, who suffers from PTSD, night terrors, disassociation and panic attacks, which keep her from interacting with the outside world unless she is absolutely forced. As a result, she experiences depression.

This meet and greet was specifically for Stefanie to meet Ruby, who took to Stefanie and her family right away! They brought their dog, “Run”, with them, and Run and Ruby got along instantly. Ruby is now tucked away safely at her new home and enjoying her new life. Ruby is just about old enough to become serious Service Dog training, so we are going to work with her on her basic obedience and heeling skills slowly until she is old enough to participate focus properly.

Stefanie has renamed Ruby to Damsel.

ADHD, Anxiety, Depression, El Paso, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Panic Attack, Texas

Melissa and SDiT Bjorn

From our wonderful trainer, Terry, in El Paso, who is training with Melissa and her SDIT, Bjorn! Melissa suffers from have major depression, anxiety, ADD, and OCD. Her anxiety has many triggers; the biggest two lately have been extreme amounts of stress and claustrophobia. She also has naturally low blood pressure, and when she gets sick, it tends to drop even lower and she has been known to lose her balance or pass out. She has appointments at the end of the month with a Rheumatologist. Her PCP thinks there is a likely chance that she has Lupus and RA.

Terry writes:

This is a great picture of Melissa and Bjorn successfully completing “controlled load into vehicle”. Additional training covered; proper leash control, “sits on command”, “noise distraction”, “off lead heeling”, and “controlled unload out of vehicle”. All in all, things went exceptionally well, especially for the first session of hands-on-training. Melissa has only had this dog for two weeks, but you can definitely tell during the session that she has put a lot of work into training, that Bjorn already had training despite being a rescue, and that Melissa and Bjorn absolutely love each other. From all indications, she will continue to provide this passion as long as she has this dog. Melissa and Bjorn are a wonderful fit, and will do well throughout the program.”

Cancer, Medical Alert, Panic Attack, PTSD, Self Training, Texas

Update from Inuko

From our dear, dear Inuko who is battling cancer. Luckily, her Service Dog Gadget loves her so very much. We are so indebted to her for continuing to share her battles with us – but she is never alone. We love you, Inuko and Gadget! Keep up the laughter!!!

“Last night was another bad night. I had another one of my infamous headaches and was curled up on the bed, exhausted… But Gadget never left my side. When I was frightened from the pain, I curled up around my girl and her breathing calmed me. Its strange, looking back at it… When did this puppy capture my heart so completely? When did she become such an intricate part of who I am? My day wouldn’t be complete without snuggles from my Gadget. She has helped me immensely. My PTSD is still bad, and I am still very sick, but I am surrounded by the ones that love me.

I am also attaching some pictures from our outing to Petco today. We were being goofballs, and Gadget sat there, wagging her tail and making us all laugh. Its so nice to laugh! So I thought I would share my laughter with my SDE family! I hope it helps your day get better. It sure helped me.

With all my love,
Rain (Inuko)

ADHD, Agoraphobia, Air Force, Anxiety, Army, Asperger's, Austin, Autism, Bipolar, Cerebral Palsy, Coast Guard, Conversion Disorder, Dallas-Fort Worth, Depression, Dysgraphia, Dyslexia, El Paso, Epilepsy, Experience, Fibromyalgia, Houston, Hypoglycemia, Lubbock, Marine, Medical Alert, Military, Mobility, Multiple Sclerosis, Muscular Dystrophy, Navy, Pain Management, Panic Attack, Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS), Psychiatric, PTSD, Rio Grande Valley, San Antonio, Schizophrenia, Seizure, TBI, Texas, Tourette's Syndrome, Veteran, Waco, Wounded Warrior

Assistance in the Rio Grande Valley and more

This is a message from our exceptionally brilliant and compassionate trainer, Jacqueline (Jackie). Her life’s passion is to help Veterans, and she asked us to post this for all Veterans, especially in the Rio Grande Valley (RGV), if they need help.

I have been a graduate psychologist at the VA down here in the RGV. After working in 3 different VA health care systems, I have seen the great need for Veteran care and have seen both good (actually excellent) and bad ways VAs are run and treatment is provided. It is with an EXTREMELY saddened heart that I can no longer allow myself to provide a lower level of care to Veterans than what they deserve, nor be forced into functioning in a treatment setting that is providing unethical care.

I LOVE my work with Veterans and see such a huge need for this to continue, but as I leave, I also see several other amazing psychologists leaving as well due to the same challenges. I continue to see a need for Behavioral Health Care in the Rio Grande Valley, with Veterans and Civilians alike. After 11 years of schooling and 7 years providing Behavioral Health (BH) Services, I was completing my licensure requirements as a psychologist to provide the highest and most comprehensive options out there, however, despite the need for services in the RGV, I ran into several dead ends for finishing this last piece. However, I am willing to put my own final step on hold to help two communities (Veterans and anyone in the RGV) in need of BH services.

I hold a Masters Level License in the State of Texas that allows me to practice independently (but with some restrictions from what I would have had with my psychologist license and obviously at about 1/3-1/4 of the pay). I am hoping to make some things come together over the next month or two (and will probably be open to picking up random general labor work as my student loans have gone into effect and I incurred debt moving from Idaho to here), but am hoping to offer TeleHealth (similar to Skyping but in a much more secure system) and/or in home therapy/animal assisted-therapy services here in the RGV at hopefully a fraction of the cost of some other places (most likely on an income based sliding scale fee basis) since I will not be accepting insurance and I am wanting to reach a larger population of those in need.

That being said, minus the in-home piece, I am able to offer this TeleHealth service within the scope of my practice anywhere in the state of Texas. I am most wanting to reach Veterans as I know for many, wait times between treatment sessions is 2-3 months in several facilities throughout the state. However, I am also really wanting to service Civilians in the RGV and throughout Texas. I am NOT bilingual unfortunately, but have a considerable amount of understanding of the RGV culture, the Hispanic Culture, and the Texas Hispanic Culture.

For those of you who may know of people who may be able to benefit from this, please feel free to contact me. I will gladly share my extensive training and treatment experience with anyone who requests this, and am hoping to start this as an option for the community within the next two months.

Please contact me at: Jacqueline Kappelman

Experience, Military, Panic Attack, Psychiatric, PTSD, San Antonio, Texas, Veteran, Wounded Warrior

Prayers to Daniel

Well, friends, the unthinkable has happened again to our dear, wonderful, amazing, courageous, loving, and fragile Wounded Warrior, Daniel. I don’t know if you remember, but his beloved SD, Ivan, a beautiful pitbull who was trained to perfection and enabled Daniel to live a somewhat normal life again, had to be euthanized at less than 3 years old due to a lethal heart murmur and a 32% enlarged heart. Ivan was showing signs of labored breathing, white gums, coughing, and lethargy, and Daniel finally made the agonizing decision when our friends at St. Francis of Assisi told Daniel if they believed Ivan was suffering. It was a grueling experience.

Well, Daniel was understandably devastated by losing his Battle Buddy – especially at such a young age (in fact, I had just recently seen them and Ivan seemed so happy). Daniel became housebound with grief for awhile, but managed to pull himself up by his bootstraps and start the SD training again – this time, with Ivan’s brother, Stubby. Stubby was 3. Stubby always developed a cough during the winter, but Daniel attributed it to allergies, since Stubby never exhibited other symptoms. Little did Daniel know – Stubby had inherited the same genetic mutation for cardiomegaly as his littermate, Ivan.

They had only had one training session when Daniel started noticing the cough becoming worse. Then, two mornings ago, Stubby threw up blood and his gums were white. The wonderful Dr. Bauml at St. Francis agreed to see Stubby on his lunchbreak – and the news was bad – very bad. Ultrasounds and x-rays revealed that Stubby’s heart was 82% larger than it should have been. I completely encompassed his chest cavity, compressing his lungs and making it almost impossible to breath.

We all spoke, and Daniel, in shock, finally understood the severity of the condition and the amount of suffering Stubby was experiencing. Dr. Bauml even stayed after hours to consult with a veterinary cardiologist to see if there was anything that could be done.

Last night, at approximately 8:30 pm, Stubby’s throat became so swollen, he was almost lifeless. Daniel took him to the ER, and made the grueling but humane decision once again to put Stubby to rest.

I’m sure many of you cannot even fathom losing two Service Dogs within 6 months. But I knew Daniel, and those dogs had all the love they could ever have wanted during their time on earth.

Please, please say prayers for Daniel’s healing. He will surely need it. For more on causes and signs of cardiomegaly in your dog, please read the post above this one. And not that this is ANY fault of Daniel’s – but both Ivan and Stubby were purchased by a roadside seller. While this is not always a recipe for failure, please be wary of these people. Not only is it illegal (but the police don’t care), there is usually a great deal of inbreeding involved with these home-bred dogs. Inbreeding most usually causes genetic abnormalities in dogs.

If you wish to personally express your condolences to Daniel, his FB page is Daniel Robert Stroud. Also, I am personally asking if anyone might consider sending the family any amount of money to help with the incredible expenses they have spent trying to save their dogs.

Rest in eternal peace, Stubby. Go and run with your brother, Ivan

ADA Rights, Agoraphobia, Anxiety, Experience, Panic Attack, San Antonio, Texas

Service Dog is Harassed by Police

Service Dog is Harassed by Police: Please watch the video.

It happened at the home of our client, Gilbert, one of the sweetest people I’ve ever met. He has a Service Dog that is fully trained name “Solea”. I helped train her. Gilbert had severe agoraphobia, and Solea has helped him start to live a normal life. The police showed up at the door as Gilbert’s mother was coming home. They were searching for Gilbert’s sister, who had a warrant for her arrest. She does not even live with Gilbert and his mother. Gilbert said there were 6 officers there, all with guns pointed. He posted it on youtube, and sent it to us. It made me cry. You can bet the Atascosa County Sheriff’s Office will be hearing from me. We responded to Gilbert and asked him the following questions, and here are Gilbert’s replies:

1. What emotions were you going through during the encounter and after the encounter? Gilbert – “I was extremely upset/scared/nervous for us – me and Solea – before we could even step out.”

2. How did Solea help you cope? Gilbert – “She helped me stay as calm as I could under the circumstances of me almost losing her to the ignorance of these officers.”

3. What happened to you and Solea once you exited the home; ie – how did the officers treat you and Solea after the incident? Gilbert – “After we exited the house, a Captain continued to harass and verbally attack me, once again, Solea begins to bark because she can sense my anxiety and she’s protecting me; we have to remember these deputies had guns out and were wearing black vests outside their clothes.” Ironically – the Lieutenant that was the last to leave “apologized” for the Captain’s behavior.

4. How many people were outside your home and in what capacity? Gilbert: “There were 6 officers – all had their weapons drawn and pointed at us.”

5. Who was at home with you and Solea? Gilbert: “My mom and brother.”

There will be more footage of this tomorrow. Apparently, a detective had been out the day before and scoured the home, and was completely aware of the fact that Solea was a Service Dog. Gilbert is filing a complaint against the Captain that continued to harass him and Solea afterward, and is going to press criminal charges for harassment of a Service Dog and Service Dog handler, as well as a code that Gilbert looked up that states that in the state of Texas, if a Service Dog is Harassed or hurt in any way, the person responsible for that action is responsible for any rehabilitation that the Service Dog needs after this traumatization. Gilbert said that Solea is definitely showing signs of trauma.

I think this is definitely worth pressing charges for and alerting the media. Gilbert is handling it, despite his severe anxiety, like a true professional. I am so proud of him. – Laurie

ADA Rights, Anxiety, Depression, Panic Attack, San Antonio, Texas

Alex and SDiT Allie

From our wonderful trainer, Beverly, who began working with Alex, who suffers from severe anxiety and depression, and his SDIT, “Allie”.

“Allie is a super sweet dog who already goes many places with Alex, and has been his “emotional support” animal. Alex wants Allie to be a fully trained Service Dog to help with anxiety and panic attacks, bring him out of depressed moods, and remind him to take medications. Alex’s job as a realtor allows him to take Allie with him to most places, so she is already accustomed to “going to work.” During our training sessions, we discussed the importance of “high value treats” to get Allie to perform the necessary skills, especially when she is being a bit “stubborn”. We also discussed ADA laws, rules for Service Dogs, and the steps needed in the process for him and Allie to be a SD team. Alex will be training with both my son, Andrew and I to ensure we can get him through the process in a timely fashion. At our next session, we will work on the basic commands, such as “sit”, “down”, “stay”, and some fun games to engage Allie in play.”

ADA Rights, Anxiety, Experience, Panic Attack, PTSD

Great story of empowerment

A great story of empowerment by our client Brian and his SD Faith. He is leaning forwarding, ensuring access rights of all handlers and their beloved Service Dogs.

“Hi Laurie, I had already been let into the Copper Top restaurant in Tuscaloosa, Alabama when one of the security/doormen came up to me and my dog from the back and said “You and your dog will have to leave. ” He said something to the effect of “You don’t even need that dog.” I’ve been in this place several times with absolutely no problems with my SD Faith – even the doorman before recognized me and Faith and had absolutely no problems. I had the business card from the DOJ that had all of the laws about Service Dogs, and I asked him to please read them. He said he wasn’t reading anything, and that we needed to get out and get out now.

I asked “let’s not take this to that point that I have to call the police.” He seemed very hostile from the start, and, of course this made him even more hostile. He also made a comment that I did not need a Service Dog because I was in there the night before without one. That was because Faith had surgery several days before and was not up to going out, of course. As you and I know my medical condition and my Service Dog’s medical condition is none of his business.

Sadly enough, I did call the police and they took the restaurant’s side! Two officers from the Tuscaloosa City Police Department came and said that any private business could kick anybody out for any condition whatsoever. They called the next officer in charge, and he had the same attitude! He asked what he could do to make me happy and asked if he would please just read the laws!

All of this was this past Friday night approximately 8:30 PM (Nov 28th). On Monday, I called Lieutenant M. at the Tuscaloosa Police Department – he also said any private business can kick anyone out it anytime regardless of having a Service Dog or any type of disability!

My Service Dog, Faith has been a complete Savior to me since I’ve gotten her! She’s done nothing but help me along the way; I couldn’t get along without her. I’ve been completely depressed and had anxiety attacks ever since this is happened!!! I feel that she and I are going to be a target anywhere we go!! I’m afraid to take her anywhere because I feel I am going to be run out of every little business that I go into!!

I thought I was calling the police department for help, but yet they’re the ones who helped run me off and took the side of the other people who were kicking me out -and gave me false hope for me and anyone who is disabled or has a Service Dog! Not just with the doorman, Copper Top, Tuscaloosa, but everywhere.

I did talk to the Department of Justice on Monday, and the lady I spoke with did confirm that the Tuscaloosa Police Department and the Coppertop and Mr. Jones were in complete violation of the laws and would be sending me a packet in the mail ASAP.

UPDATE: 8 December 2014 – Brian met with the owner of Copper Top

The meeting went extremely well. The owner of Copper Top was great! It was entirely 1 employee trying to “Flex his muscle”! The owner was wanting details and was very apologetic and invited me and Faith back! He guaranteed he’d take care of the employee. Cherry (a Service Dog Express Trainer) was such great help on the phone the other day!! I had built up so much anxiety and depression since the incident, and she made me feel much better!!!! She provided me with tons of info! Thanks to all of you!! I am still going to schedule a meeting with the chief of police to try to get local laws in line with the ADA or to get them to realize their street level officers are not up to date on laws. Lastly, the owner mentioned us working together to find a charity to help fund together !!!! Who would’va thought?

Brian

Anxiety, Austin, Experience, Panic Attack, PTSD, Texas

Presentation by Lucia and Lily

What a joyful day in Service Dog world! Dear Lucia, in Austin, with her SD Lily, was asked to teach a class on Service Dogs at the local college! This is what she wrote! Can you imagine – someone who was paralyzed by PTSD and anxiety going up in front of a classroom full of people to educate them about Service Dogs! SO PROUD OF YOU LUCIA AND LILY!

” Hi Laurie! The class went very well! You should have seen the critical thinkers in the class that were so interested in Service Dog issues. Since they are all future educators, we even got into how to address Service Dog concerns in the classroom after the basics were covered (kids/students that are afraid or don’t understand why they can’t pet, how to address parents and classmates without compromising privacy, even issues regarding conflicting interpretations of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the ADA Titles II and III regarding Service Dogs). I think they got a pretty good introduction to what it’s like to have a Service Dog on a daily basis, too–including the harassment, questions, weird comments, weird and inappropriate behaviors, etc. (and of course good things, too). We talked about invisible disabilities, too. Lots of things!”

I AM SO PROUD OF YOU. INFORMING OTHERS ABOUT SOMETHING YOU EXPERIENCE YOURSELF IS SO POWERFUL!