Virtual Pet Therapy #9

Our furry wingmen can be the best therapy

When Covid became a thing I introduced Virtual Pet Therapy sessions at work and hosted weekly meetings where people could drop in and say hello to Leffe and bring along their own little (and not so little) bundles of furry joy, somebody even brought a Goat one day!

I continued them as part of my blogging when I started over at Medium and would post pictures of what Leffe had been up to during the week and how he had helped me.

Growing up, I never had any pets. I would often wonder why people got so upset when they told me they had lost a pet, even to the extent of crying! This always shocked me, as I didn’t understand.

When I was diagnosed with C-PTSD, I asked Colleen what she thought about getting a dog, as she had grown up with lots of pets. She was surprised that I mentioned it, but she put lots of work into looking for a dog and found a trusted breeder. A year after my request, she brought home Leffe. In that very instant, I immediately realised why people became so upset at losing a ‘pet’ because, in that moment, I connected with him and felt nothing but love.

Over the years that love has done nothing but intensify, My wife Colleen has been “My Rock” during some of the most traumatic days of my life as I battle with my PTSD but she can’t be with me 24/7 and that is where Leffe has always stepped in to look after me and that’s why I call him “My Pebble”. He has always had a sense for when I am struggling or being triggered and he will just come over and lay beside me or put a paw on me and help to ground me back in reality.

Since coming over to SubStack (Thanks

Dr Mehmet Yildiz

) I have felt a great sense of community, support and genuine interest from people. My blogging on the topic of Online Child Safety and Mental Health Awareness is a passion for me and extremely important (See my about page to understand why) but I know it is not a ‘Sexy’ subject or one that will ever go viral and over at Medium I would maybe get a couple of comments but nothing very encouraging and that was one of the reasons I took a long break from blogging for my own mental health.

I have been here for about two weeks now, and it has been night and day compared to Medium. People have conversations with me!

Today I had a wonderful conversation with

Holly

This conversation reminded me that Virtual Pet Therapy used to spark a lot of good feelings and conversation with those who took part and they genuinely looked forward to it each week, so today I am reinstating it because it always brought me just as much joy! Thanks, Holly.

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So here are some highlights from the last week! Leffe enjoys walks down by the river as he never knows who he might meet and today was his first experience of swans, which he seemed to enjoy as he didn’t try to pick a fight with them which is always a good start. It was also his first introduction to brussel sprouts………….not so much of a fan it seems.

Virtual Pet Therapy #9

The picture, middle right on the sofa is an interesting one as that is where I always sit and in a normal house I may even say “That’s my seat” but in this house, I learned long ago that what is mine is his and what is his is his. This is his house we just pay the bills. Anytime I leave the room he will make a bee-line for the seat and it genuinely makes me laugh out loud every time, I will see if I can find a recording of it and put it in a future Virtual Peth Therapy post.

The bottom left picture is just one of those that shows his sixth sense in action as a picture of me minutes earlier would have shown me alone and starting to spiral because of something that had just been shown during an advert break, he came to me and he sat in front of me and the world was all good again.

Let me know in the comments what you think of this and also share your images of your “pebbles” helping you through tough times because it is that shared experience that will also help others!

I don’t use any other forms of social media for my mental health I gave them up 5 years ago so not only do I ask you to restack, subscribe and comment here but If you could share on your social media too I will be forever grateful as I would like to reach as many Parents, guardians, teachers and kids with my publication and try to educate them about the dangers online, how to recognise them and more importantly protect them and their kids from them.