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A major chunk of the U.S. population suffers from one or more types of mental health disorders. Following the modern-day hectic schedules that we all follow, stress, anxiety, and gloomy days have become a common trend now. The need for psychologists has increased manifold over the past few years.
While therapy does help in treating severe cases, not everyone can afford the luxury of getting a personal therapist to analyze and improve their particular health condition. However, if you think your condition is not that severe and is manageable, emotional support animals can help.
How emotional support animals can help? They are cute, affordable, provide emotional support, and unconditional love. While animals like dogs and cats eventually provide emotional support, you can have some unique legal allowances for your dog with an ESA letter which otherwise are not permitted.
Considering the rising ESA letters scam, it is important to know how one can get a legitimate ESA letter. Well, we have got you covered here.
Below we share with you the steps of how you can get a legitimate ESA letter. Read on.
Step-by-step Process of Getting an ESA Letter
Before we jump into the process, it is important that you must know the benefits of an ESA letter. There are many places where you are not allowed to live with your dog and an ESA letter helps you exactly with that. An ESA letter proves that you have an ESA for a certain mental health condition which is why you are given certain housing facilities and other necessities.
By showing an ESA letter, you can easily get permission to live with your dog even in dog-restricted areas.
Now, let’s know about the process of getting an ESA letter.
Consult With a Licensed Mental Health Professional
The first you need to do for getting an ESA letter is to connect with a licensed mental health professional. Medical professionals who recommend ESA letters are generally called ESA doctors. The doctor will ask you for some basic information including your name, your pet’s name, and why you need an ESA letter. You will have to state your mental health issue and get the doctor’s approval for getting the letter.
If you have a genuine mental health disorder or any other issue for which you need emotional support, your doctor will approve your condition. There are several online websites that have professional doctors who easily provide ESA letters. If you wish to connect to one such website, you can simply perform a search saying ‘My ESA doctor’ and will get the best suggestions.
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Once your doctor approves your condition, you will soon receive the letter for housing certified by your doctor via email. You just have to pay a certain amount for the consultation and that’s it.
You can now get a print of your ESA letter and use it to live freely with your emotional support animal.
What Information Does an ESA Letter Include?
Many of you might be wondering what an ESA letter must look like? Well, an ESA letter is signed by a practicing licensed mental health professional. So, it contains information including the doctor’s license number, the date when the letter was issued, etc.
An ESA letter also contains information about your mental condition and states your need for an emotional support animal. Remember, the doctor does not register your pet as an emotional support animal but he gives you a prescription that says you’re qualified to get an emotional support animal.
Do You Qualify for an ESA Letter?
While getting an ESA letter seems pretty simple but it is not. Considering the growing scam where people misuse the mental health aspect of an ESA letter just to break the no-pet policies of certain apartments, medical professionals have become strict about ESA letters.
As long as your doctor thinks that you need an ESA for the betterment of your health condition, you might get an ESA letter without having a severe or debilitating mental health issue. But here are the following mental health disorders for which you can easily get an ESA letter:
- Anxiety
- OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder)
- Bipolar Disorder
- Depression
- Different types of phobias
- Any traumatic experience
- High stress to social engagements
- Some emotional disorders
Well, as mentioned earlier, if your doctor thinks your condition could see improvement with the presence of an emotional support animal, you will easily get an ESA letter.
Advantages of an ESA Letter
Below are the main advantages of getting an emotional support animal letter:
- Rental Permission: There are many dog-restricted rental apartments and residential buildings where you are either not allowed to take pets or are required to pay a high amount. By showing an ESA letter, you can easily get a decent discount on the rental fees or might be allowed to live with your free at no cost.
- Permission to Take Your Pet in Stores: There are certain stores that do not really fancy you walking your dog around the store. You might get weird looks from the store owners or the staff. To avoid this, you can simply show them your valid ESA letter to let them know that you need them for your mental health. They would surely understand.
Bottom Line
Animals have always been the best source of support out there. And you know what’s the best part? They never ask for anything in return. If you also need an emotional support animal in your life and leverage the benefits of an ESA letter, make sure you connect with the right mental health professional. Be aware of the ESA letters scam and get a legitimate ESA letter.
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Tom
Tom has always loved to write since he was little - he wanted to be either a writer or a veterinary doctor, but he ended up being a professional writer while most of his works are based on animals. He was born in San Francisco but later moved to Texas to continue his job as a writer. He graduated from the University of San Francisco where he studied biotechnology. He is happily married and a soon to be father!
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