World Mental Health Day

Our Ongoing Effort to Spread Mental Health Awareness

10th of October is officially recognised as World Mental Health day by the World Federation for Mental Health and this year the chosen theme is “prioritising mental health in the workplace .”

This topic is incredibly relevant for us at PADs: awareness of mental health doesn’t stop at making people aware of conditions, it’s also about educating people on the rights of those with mental conditions, the types of support available, as well as helping the wider community understand what they can do to support people with psychiatric conditions.

More than a companion

The more that people learn about the benefits of assistance dogs, the wider their understanding becomes about mental health in general. The psychological benefits of owning a pet are well-documented, but the benefits of a fully-certified assistance dog goes further still.

To those that have one, an assistance dog is a way for people of all ages to reclaim a level of independence that may have been taken away. For thousands of people across the UK, assistance dogs are an important lifeline that give people the confidence – and the physical support – to work, go to the shops, do things around the house and importantly do whatever makes them happy.

So effective is the presence of an assistance dog, that in many cases the need for a carer is reduced, which lowers care costs while granting the user more freedom.

In spite of this, for many the outdated image that comes to mind of an assistance dog might be a guide dog for the blind, but this only goes some way to explain the usefulness of assistance dogs and unfairly excludes disabilities that can’t be seen.  

Where we come in

We provide a wealth of information to help anyone interested in a Psychiatric Assistance dog as well as helping businesses, family, friends and carers wherever possible. We have experience in every step of the process and our aim is to use that knowledge to help as many others as possible.

We help spread awareness in areas including (but not limited to):

In the coming weeks, months and years we’re planning to do even more to help raise awareness, not just of assistance dogs, but of mental health in the community as a whole.