Emotional support animals for seniors: health benefits

When it comes to all the stages of life, the most challenging time is when a person becomes a senior citizen or turns 60. For many, this age is not as “blessed” as other stages of life.

Earlier, going back half a century, seniors did not usually worry so much as their sons and other family members were usually live with them. But, modernization crumbles the concept of joint family, and now the nuclear family system is more common.

That’s why seniors are more lonely, depressed, or suffering from other mental illnesses than they were half of the century back.

At this stage of life, they need companionship, motivation, and, most importantly, a living purpose. People used to live with an emotional support animal (ESA) to improve their health in the second phase of life.

An ESA is a companion animal that benefits a person who is depressed, dealing with ongoing disabilities, or chronic illnesses. It is becoming more evident that these emotional support animals can significantly help the health and well-being of senior citizens. An ESA can be any animal, but a dog and a cat are more common in ESA.

Here are some of the benefits of having an emotional support animal in the second inning of the life.

Improving Physical Well-Being

Exercise is a much-needed tool for a healthy lifestyle for seniors. Inactive aging can trigger severe health conditions like high blood pressure, heart attacks, increased cholesterol, and spiked blood sugar levels. To alleviate this, seniors need to exercise regularly, and ESA can provide a reason for seniors to get out and remain active. For instance, dogs need to walk at least once each day. Walking the dog also offers mental stability among seniors.

You Meet New People

Pets help their owners to interact with other people and build a social support network, and having a social support network has many health benefits. During your walks, you meet other people who like exercising or walking their pets too. It will increase social life and prevent Alzheimer’s disease. Moreover, Study has found pet owners were more likely than non–pet owners to get to know new people.

Creation of a New Routine

In many cases after retirement, people have nothing much to do except eat, sleep, and read the newspaper. Getting a pet adds new activities to your day-to-day life. Owning a pet creates a new routine that includes washing, feeding, walking, playing, and grooming your pet. These activities help to keep you occupied most of the day and alleviate your loneliness.

Finding a New Meaning to Life

At a certain age, you will lose interest in most things, or you may discard your hobbies and other pleasurable activities due to a lack of motivation. ESA will motivate you, and you will take everything positively. It will give you a new aim in life, rather than living with nothing to motivate you. This could be the main reason why you need an emotional support animal in your old age.

Improving Mental Health and Well-Being

Emotional support animals can also help reduce mental disabilities like depression, stress, and anxiety. The main reason behind depression in seniors is loneliness and isolation. With an emotional support animal, many seniors find companionship and friendship that helps them to resolve loneliness and isolation.

Additionally, dogs can provide mental stimulation. It can come from reading about breeds and pet care or talking to others about dogs. It gives benefits to patients with dementia or Alzheimer’s. Moreover, interacting with a dog can stimulate the appetite of people who might not eat regularly because of these conditions.

Your ESA will cooldown Your Agitation

After a certain age, people become agitated, and there are several reasons behind agitation, A Change in the environment or a change in your caretakers. However, agitation can develop a medical condition known as Alzheimer’s disease. The presence of an emotional support animal in old age will provide better and therapeutic solutions to the agitation problem.

Final words

Don’t feel lonely and depressed in your old age when you have your best friend in the form of an emotional support animal. They can help improve your overall well-being and give your life purpose. If you need assistance on ESA, contact Fast ESA Letter.