Animal Companions and Emotion Regulation:
How
OurPets Help
Cope
Us
By Elizabeth Harvey
S
ammi lets out a big sigh and settles into the steady breathing of sleep on the floor of my office. I release a deep breath and settle in at my desk, observing that I seem to have taken a cue from my dog. Those of us with animal companions (a term used interchangeably with pet) sometimes notice that they seem to be in sync with us, helping set the tone for our mood, or that their presence can help us find a sense of calm, especially during times of intense emotion or distress. The process of managing emotions is known in human psychology as emotion regulation. Emotion regulation is a process that can be internal or external1. An example of external, or interpersonal, emotion regulation is the normal experience we go through when we have a bad day and someone else’s presence helps lift us out of it. Having someone to help us process and cope with overwhelming feelings shows us how to do a better job of it by ourselves. Is it possible for the “someone else” involved in emotion regulation to be an animal, particularly an animal companion or therapy animal? The experiences of many of us have with our animals and human psychology research both suggest this can be the case. Those of us with pets in our lives can likely think of many times we’ve turned to them for emotional support or comfort. And though more study is needed, research from an attachment theory perspective supports this idea. Attachment theory seeks to explain human relationships on the basis of an intrinsic need for connection that supports survival,
12
YOUR PET MAGAZINE | @YOURPETNM
from relationships with early caregivers to romantic partners and other important figures in a person’s life. More to come on these attachment theory explanations and how animals may fit in, but first, a story.
tions, a school psychologist friend suggested that maybe a dog could help. We had already been thinking of adding a dog to our family, and soon adopted Sammi, a Golden Retriever mix, through a local rescue.
Understanding how pets can be a part of emotion regulation for humans became a research interest for me during my time in graduate school for counseling, when personal experience and professional interest came together on this topic. I was a non-traditional graduate student changing careers after 15 years of work in public policy. After moving back to Las Cruces from Washington, DC, I entered NMSU’s clinical mental health counseling master’s program. Being home in New Mexico rekindled the connection with animals and nature that I had felt growing up here in the midst of dogs, horses, cattle, crops, and wilderness. Over time, I began to incorporate a focus on human-animal interaction in my counseling training. The shared path of my then-four-year-old son and our adopted dog Sammi would soon give me an even greater appreciation for the difference animals can make.
Sammi’s story leading up to her adoption was a mystery to us, but we knew she needed care to heal and recover. She had a haggard mama-dog look with protruding ribs and evidence of recently nursing pups, though she seemed to be just out of puppyhood herself. She had intestinal parasites, and an infection complicated her recovery from being spayed in the shelter. When we first brought her home, she passed by the soft bed we made for her and curled up in the fetal position on the cool brick floor, sleeping for hours. Sammi stayed glued to my side as I moved from room to room in the house and refused to go outside by herself. I started calling her my “Golden shadow.” When we tried to leave the house without her, she barked and cried, frantically trying to follow us. As it turned out, Sammi also had separation anxiety.
As we adjusted to our new life in New Mexico, my son had a major struggle with separation anxiety as we tried to start him in preschool. He dreaded being left at school and was scared that I wouldn’t come back. No amount of reassurance made a difference and he would cry inconsolably if I left him at school. We tried many approaches to help with this situation but the negative impact was ongoing. We had to take a break from his starting school. As I considered our op-
The kindest approach to helping our new dog adjust seemed to be to take her in the car with us whenever we could. Soon, this included a trip to the preschool in the mornings as we made another attempt at going to school. This time was different. My son somehow began to feel more comfortable getting dropped off if Sammi accompanied him into the lobby. It was a major turning point after the stresses we had experienced with his transition to school. Sammi’s presence at drop-off comforted and calmed him so that he was able to walk in and join the
