Does BetterHelp provide emotional support animal letter?
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OptimistMinds
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Author bio
The Optimistminds editorial team is made up of psychologists, psychiatrists and mental health professionals. Each article is written by a team member with exposure to and experience in the subject matter. The article then gets reviewed by a more senior editorial member. This is someone with extensive knowledge of the subject matter and highly cited published material.
This article will discuss if BetterHelp provides an emotional support animal letter for those who require it. In addition to this, we will be checking out some of the mental health benefits of such animals that their owners can enjoy. Lastly, we will be perusing some of the superb features of BetterHelp that can be useful for those who are struggling with their mental health.
Does BetterHelp provide emotional support animal letter?
No, BetterHelp does not provide an emotional support animal letter. This is because federal laws and regulations do not allow therapists who work in telehealth platforms to offer these letters, even if they are fully licensed and certified. In order to obtain such a letter, you will need to contact a therapist in-person and convince them of your needs.
Benefits of emotional support animals
Many people use emotional support animals for their mental health issues. In comparison to service animals, emotional support animals are not for those who have a disability. They simply help individuals improve their mental health through their presence alone. Some of the benefits that owners of such animals enjoy have been described in the following section:
These animals can stimulate happy hormones
Playing with a furry pal can often lead to higher levels of happiness than before. This is because they stimulate our bodies to produce dopamine and even oxytocin. These hormones help us feel happy and even stimulate feelings of love and comfort. Thus, emotional support animals can become important for those who are experiencing depression.
They can provide companionship
Ultimately, emotional support animals and even simple pets can provide tons of companionship. This could be clearly seen at the time of the coronavirus pandemic where almost everyone was required to stay at home and socially distance themselves. The levels of pet ownership significantly increased since pets can provide companionship and even friendship.
They can be part of the intervention
Mental health is intersectional and thus therapy alone cannot improve its status. Thus therapists often encourage many other means which can help us with our mental health throughout the day and perhaps until the next session. Emotional support animals are being highly recommended by therapists to help their clients take better care of their mental health throughout the week.
They can help with anxiety
Emotional support animals can greatly help with anxiety. Those who are experiencing stress and anxiety will immediately find relief after playing with a four-legged friend for some time. This does not exactly have to be an active play; it can also be just stroking the fur of the animal. Thus, those persons who experience anxiety often will find tremendous benefit with these animals.
They can bring forth healthy habits
Everyone who has owned a pet knows the large amounts of dedicated work that they can bring to a person. Pets require on-time feeding, cleaning and even exercise. Research studies have shown that owning a dog can greatly increase the chances and time spent in walking and other forms of exercise. Thus, emotional support animals can lead to the formation of many healthy habits.
They can stimulate performance
Emotional support animals can also stimulate the performance of their owners. This is particularly if the bond between the owner and the animal is quite strong. And thus, individuals would want to care and provide for their animals by which they would increase their performance in other areas of life such as their work, relationships and social lives.
They can teach many skills
These animals can also be very useful for the purpose of teaching many skills. These skills come not because of the presence of the animal alone, but also the many opportunities that come with it. For instance, owning a dog can mean regular walking and trips to the dog park where the person can meet many like-minded people and thus improve their social skills.
Best features of BetterHelp
BetterHelp has several advantages and benefits that can help its users. Thus, this platform is one of the most popular online therapy platforms today. The best features of BetterHelp have been explored as follows:
- BetterHelp has a large network of licensed and certified mental health professionals. And thus, those who sign up for this platform do not have to wait for long periods of time before they are matched with a proper therapist.
- The platform also uses a spectacular algorithm that can bring about a better match between the client and the therapist. This is done based on the information that the user provides at the time of signing-up. Clients can also choose their own therapists from the directory given.
- BetterHelp is completely HIPAA compliant and thus clients do not have to worry about the safety and security of the platform. This breeds more trust in the client and thus contributes positively to the intervention itself.
- The platform not only provides individual therapy but also offers excellent services for couples therapy and teens therapy. It additionally has group sessions that are conducted about once a week.
- BetterHelp gives a lot of convenience and comfort to the client by allowing various formats of therapy such as messaging, audio sessions and video sessions.
Conclusion
This article has discussed if BetterHelp provides an emotional support animal letter for those who require it. In addition to this, we have checked out some of the mental health benefits of such animals that their owners can enjoy. Lastly, we have perused some of the superb features of BetterHelp that can be useful for those who are struggling with their mental health.
If you like this article, please post your comments and questions below.
Citations
https://esadoctors.com/ask-doctor-emotional-support-animal-letter/
https://www.simplepractice.com/blog/emotional-support-animal-letter/
Confirming the benefits of emotional support animals
https://positivepsychology.com/pets-mental-health/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BetterHelp
https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/betterhelp
https://www.owler.com/company/betterhelp
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