are your reptiles therapy for you?

[crepers86]

When I had to stay at the salvation army at the end of last year, and give up my kids (snakes), they where what kept me going and striving to get what I needed to get them all back. However I had to go through some theraputic groups, due to the reason behind why I had to go, which also paid for my stay at the shelter. It was a place called "Our Daily Bread" and is ran by Christus Medical Group for out patient treatment on drug addiction and mental illness to the homeless. Anyways I don't have drug addiction but I did use there service for therapy for "Mental Illness". I am going back there to do a presentation on reptiles, and I would love it if I could hear and maybe use some of your stories on how your Herps are therapy for you. if you don't feel comfortable posting here send it to me privately. I wont use any names unless stated it is ok.

[mainbutter]

short answer, yes I get therapeutic benefits from keeping and caring for reptiles.

Music therapy and dog therapy are both much better researched than "reptile therapy", but I believe there are many similarities between these and many other activities.

Stimulation, motivation, positive interactions, and some degree of physical activity are wonderful things to have.

[ballpythonluvr]

Are my reptiles therapy for me? Absolutely! Caring for them gives me structure and routine. I find this to be very relaxing also, especially when I handle my male normal who is a big baby and he chills out with me. He is a very laid back snake and I love him to pieces. He is by far my favorite.

[Xotik]

Absolutely! If I didn't have my kids I would have far more disorder and chaos in my life. With them - its how it is. It definitely helps having friends that don't judge you, because regardless of what humans say - they judge constantly. Snakes don't care. They don't care your color, gender, orientation, political views..NOTHING, so long as you feed them. They may not love you, but they do give very good hugs.

[Evenstar]

Absolutely!! But my story is slightly different from what you might expect. If this falls in with the nature of your presentation, you may certainly use it.

I have chronic pain in my neck and upper back. I had rolled my car several years ago and thankfully I was able to walk away from it, but I've had back problems ever since and I've suffered from migraines as a result. When I feel tense and feel the beginnings of a headache coming on, I take out Ella, my adult normal BP, and wrap her around my neck. Her weight is just right and her gentle "massage therapy" of subtle movement and pressure relieves my tension and takes away the pain. I've never had such a good massause!!

Ella's massage is something I can do any time when I'm home and I can relax better with her help. It's been proven that animals have a calming effect on people's mental state and Ella's presence helps me relax my mind so her gentle pressure can relax my muscles. Since having her, I've had far fewer migraines and I can control my back and neck pain. She's been a true blessing!

[Mike41793]

I wouldnt say theyre therapy for me exactly but stress relief yes without a doubt. I love caring for them. Every aspect of it is fun for me. Feeding, cleaning out tubs, giving them water etc...I take them out and hold them whenever i want. Theyre just so much fun to look at and interact with. Sometimes i talk to them too, thats not weird right? lmao. I also love having them bc it makes me different from alot of other people and i love being unique. So far i havent met anyone that says they keep snakes too when i tell them i do. Well except at expos i guess...People always ask SO MANY questions about them. Like they say that they hate them yet as im holding them in front of them they ask me 100 questions in a row lol. So i also enjoy that aspect of keeping them. It can be very educational to teach people about them. Hope this helps

[angllady2]

My snakes are definitely therapy for me. I suffer from migraines, high blood pressure and SAD. My snakes help me with all of my illnesses. Much like Evenstar said, when I get tense and can feel a migraine coming on, a soothing snake massage often helps.

When things stress me out badly and I can feel my heart racing and my pulse in my ears and I know my blood pressure is sky high, some quality time spent sprawled on my bed watching one of my snakes gracefully glide around sends my stress packing and keeps my blood pressure down.

In the fall and winter, when my Seasonal Affective Disorder gets so bad some days I can barley drag myself out of the bed, knowing there are little lives that depend on me for food and water and yes love {no matter what you say my snakes love me}. When that deep depression washes over me and I just feel so hopeless and lost, some time spent looking into the innocent and trusting eyes of my babies lets me know if no one else in the world cares about me, they do. I know you say they can't feel such things or act on them, and I won't argue with you about it, but I know in my heart my babies feel much more than most people give them credit for, and you will never change my mind about that.

So yes, my snakes are very therapeutic for me, and I couldn't imagine life without them.

Gale

[rebelrachel13]

They sure are. Being in high school, there's a lot of stuff I could spend my time doing. I'd rather not be involved in petty high school dramas and dangers. Instead, I choose to spend it caring for snakes (and cats). The main thing is that it gives me responsibility and keeps me sane. It also makes me feel as if I'm doing something interesting and worthwhile, as opposed to doing absolutely nothing and "going through the motions" in life. I have something to come home to, and a reason to work hard and be happy and proud of myself. It gives me confidence and it's a great conversation starter.

I have my babies to look after, supplies to budget and buy, cages to clean, and research to do. I feel that it's a productive way to use my free time, and certainly builds great skills.

I have struggled with ADD (non-hyperactive), generalized anxiety, and chronic depression since I was very young. My pets work wonders for my health.

Love this bit, too:

It definitely helps having friends that don't judge you, because regardless of what humans say - they judge constantly. Snakes don't care. They don't care your color, gender, orientation, political views..NOTHING, so long as you feed them. They may not love you, but they do give very good hugs.

[Reptileman044]

Absolutely. After a long day at work I like to come home and go throught all of my tubs and cages and just check on each animal and get a few out. It does help relax and forget about all the stresses of the day.

[dart]

I wouldn't say therapy, but a distraction from real life stress? Definitely. Snakes and video games are my outlets that make me forget I have a brutally stressful job and a newborn to prepare for. Cleaning tubs/cages, weighing and admiring my snakes is the best way to clear your mind.