I have a trained service dog to assist with my psychiatric disability and help me live a full, enriched life. This dog lives with me and accompanies me everywhere. With my service dog, I can go to busy events with lots of people, sounds, and lights. Because of her, I am able to get out of my room and participate in life. This is not something I could do with medication and therapy alone.
While many people can see how much my service dog helps me, there are some in my life who do not believe in my disability and my need for a service dog. They think this because I have never explained the severity of my psychiatric disability, and they are unaware of the tasks I have trained my service dog to do. When people doubt me or the benefits of my service dog, I imagine they think I am seeking attention or special treatment.
Even though I have documentation of my disability from neurologists, it is a constant battle to convince people that I am worthy of a service dog. People think that because I can speak in public without any problems, I must not have psychiatric issues. What they don’t realize is that I suffer in silence; I don’t let people know when I am struggling.
There is confusion about the legitimacy of service dogs in general. Anyone can go online and print an identification from a scam company. (Do a quick Google search. They are everywhere.) But you can’t make a service dog out of just any pet. A service dog must have the intense obedience training to behave in public, and must be trained in disability-related tasks. It must help its owner with tasks the owner is unable to do. Because the general public does not understand this, it can be hard for people with service dogs – especially when their disability is invisible, like mine.
People are always questioning me about my dog, demanding to see certification and proof. People want to know about my disability, and I don’t always feel like talking about it. They tell me that I am lucky, because my dog gets to go everywhere with me, but my dog is medical equipment. I wish that I could live a life where I was not dependent on my dog.
I guess I am writing this to remind everyone that not all disabilities are visible. The only time anyone should question the legitimacy of a service dog is when the dog is misbehaving in a public space. Please remember that people with service dogs do not want strangers asking them about their disability. I am grateful for my service dog, and I hope that through more education we can end the stigma around service dogs and disabilities.