Emotional support animals refer to domesticated pets such as dogs and cats that provide emotional comfort to their owners. They are recommended by physicians such as psychologists, therapists, or psychiatrists. An ESA doctor is licensed to provide ESA letters to people with mental health conditions. dog
Animals are known to provide companionship and joy. An ESA is that animal companion that intends to provide support and companionship to help alleviate symptoms of mental health conditions of their owners. Any domesticated animal such as rabbits, mice, ferrets, dogs, and cats can be made an ESA. There is completely no shade of doubt with regards to the therapeutic benefits they provide. Several research and anecdotal evidence are testament to their effectiveness in offering comfort to individuals with psychoactive conditions such as depression and anxiety.
They are a source of happiness and positivity. Studies say that various activities involving ESAs improve endorphin levels in the body. Such hormones are primarily responsible for balancing and managing the mental health of a person.
And not just that, various studies have shown that by simply petting an animal can improve BP levels which is usually a cause of rise in anxiety. In other words, ESAs are helpful in providing a sense of happiness, comfort, safety and calmness among their owners who are suffering from one or the other form of mental or emotional health disturbance.
An ESA doctoris a licensed health professional who is certified to provide ESA letters to patients with mental health conditions. The Federal rules and guidelines from the U.S. Department of Housing state that licensed health care professionals include:
Essentially, your family doctor, or primary care physician can also issue an ESA doctor letter as long as they are licensed. That means if you have a family doctor who helps with your health condition, you can consult them regarding an emotional support animal. On the contrary, the letter is only valid if it comes from a licensed health professional.
To put things into perspective, if you get your ESA certification from an unlicensed clinic or doctor claiming to provide instant ESA doctor letters online, you might as well throw it away because the landlords, HOAs, and co-ops will not recognize the letter as valid. You will also certainly lose credibility with the housing provider making it all the more difficult for you to find a suitable accommodation.
There is no comprehensive or one-size-fits-all solution to manage symptoms of psychoactive disabilities such as PTSD, anxiety, or depression. Some use prescribed medication while some seek therapy. Others turn to the age-old comfort of canine love and companionship.
An ESA doctor letter is a document that qualifies patients with mental health conditions to live with their support animal in a rental housing without any hassles. This certification must be signed by a licensed health professional.
Simply put, an ESA doctor letter signed by a licensed physician certifies that the patient’s animal is necessary for their emotional health and well being as part of the treatment. Also, you must check with your state laws as some states have certain regulations concerning the physician who confirms the ESA letter.
For an ESA letter to be valid and accepted by HOAs, co-ops, and landlords, there are certain conditions that the letter must fulfill. Consequently, the patient must ensure that the letter meets these conditions. There are as follows.
If your pet helps manage your mental health, you can get your pet an ESA doctor letter. Patients with an ESA letter are protected under Fair Housing Act and Americans with Disabilities Act. This allows ESA owners to enjoy a wide array of benefits. These include:
With an ESA doctor letter, your ESA can accompany you to places where you might not have been able to venture with your support animal without the letter. Although places such as parks, public stores, restaurants, and hotels have the right to deny access, an ESA letter could definitely help influence their decision.
Living with your pet often comes with a condition of pet fees. With an ESA doctor letter online, the owner is not obliged to pay any kind of pet fees to the landlord. The Fair Housing Act waives any kind of pet fees that is typically involved when living in a rental apartment.
Finding a safe and affordable accommodation that allows pets can be extremely difficult, An ESA letter comes with the protection from the Fair Housing Act. It allows the patient to live with their pets in a rental apartment that has a no-pet policy.
It is almost impossible to believe that someone will be allowed to bring their pets to school. Many learning institutions allow people to bring their ESAs to school. For that, you must possess a valid ESA doctor letter igned by a licensed medical health professional.
Unlike service animals that require training to be considered the same, emotional support animals do not require any training. Animals have the innate quality to provide unconditional love and support and require no training for that.
Emotional support animals have proven to be effective in alleviating symptoms of mental health conditions such as PTSD, anxiety, and depression. If you are suffering from a mental or emotional disability and your pet helps manage your health, our licensed physicians can help you get ESA doctor certification.
The only person who can write an ESA letter is a licensed health professional. The process of getting an ESA letter is very simple and convenient. The first step is to find a certified doctor who has adept knowledge regarding emotional support animals and mental health.
The ESA doctor will evaluate the patient by checking the medical history and existing medical health conditions. The doctor will determine whether having an emotional support animal helps manage the patient’s condition. Upon qualification, the patient will receive an instant ESA doctor letter through email in a pdf format.
Patients can actually get ESA letters online as well as in-clinic. Fortunately, getting the certification online is similar to that is available in-clinic. Both are equally secure. However, the online process involves less hassle and is time-effective. It actually depends upon people. Some prefer getting the certification in-clinic, others choose to make the process easier by applying online through our telemedicine portal.
Our telemedicine portal allows patients with mental health conditions to get evaluated from the comfort of their homes. Additionally, patients also get the freedom to be flexible with the appointment timings
An ESA doctor letter for housing allows owners to live with their pet without any hassles. Earlier, owners were allowed to carry their ESAs in flights in-cabin under the protection of the Air Carrier Access Act. That is why we used to provide ESA travel letters as well but due to the changes in rules in December 2020, now we only provide ESA housing letters. Essentially, ESA letter holders today are protected only under the Fair Housing Act.
For a person with a mental health condition, living with an ESA could help manage symptoms of his condition. That is why the emotional support animal laws allow owners to live with their ESAs even if the rental apartment does not allow domesticated animals. The law requires the landlord to make appropriate accommodation in the policies to make room for the ESA. Also, the letter levies certain restrictions on the landlord. These include:
That is why having an ESA letter saves a lot of trouble when finding a suitable accommodation to live with their support animal. Though these restrictions and conditions are often taken care of most times, there are certain cases where these ESA laws may not help. These include:
A service animal is any animal that is individually trained to perform certain tasks for the benefit of a person with a disability. This includes physical, sensory, intellectual, psychiatric or any other mental disability. In other words, a service animal is trained to perform visual functions for the blind, auditory functions for the deaf, and muscular tasks for the physically disabaled. Also, they act as medical alert animals (mostly dogs) for people who tend to suffer from a sudden attack. Most of them are typically trained for four months before beginning service. Several people suffering from disabilities have recognized service animals as a great solution. On the contrary, according to the Americans with Disabilities Act, not all animals that an individual with a disability relies on is a service animal.
According to the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, an ESA is any animal that proves mental and emotional support in alleviating symptoms of a person’s mental health condition. Essentially, ESAs provide companionship and love which helps relieve loneliness and manage anxiety, certain phobias, depression, and stress. They do not require any special training to perform certain tasks that service animals do.
The human with a disability in need of assistance is often referred to as the ‘handler.’ When it comes to accessibility, a handler might opt for an immediate need to bond with an assistance animal, and an emotional support animal often gets the vote. In fact, any animal that can provide emotional comfort can qualify as an emotional support animal. In contrast, not just any kind of animal can become a service animal. A person who has a mental condition often requires love and compassion and who better to provide these than ESAs.
If you are employed and have an ESA who helps manage your mental health disability, then here is some good news for you as well. If you go look at certain state employment acts such as that of California Fair Employment and Housing Act, employers cannot discriminate on the basis of your disability. The rights granted to you include:
Also, there is a possibility that your employer might not allow for an ESA under certain conditions. These include:
For any person looking for ESA letters, finding the right health professional is their first priority. With telemedicine, the process of getting the letter might have gotten easier but has increased the chances of coming across fraudulent clinics and doctors. That is why you must remain vigilant and do some research before getting the letter. The HOAs, co-ops, and landlords will not accept the letter if the ESA doctor giving the letter is not licensed or the address is not verified. So, in order to choose the right healthcare professional, there are certain conditions that you must ensure.
Don’t worry about feeling overwhelmed with the process to get an ESA letter online. It can be a daunting experience for a beginner especially when it comes to finding a legit ESA doctor. In case you get caught up with the wrong one, not only do you risk losing the chance to experience the spectrum of benefits an ESA provides, but also lose credibility with your landlord and may have problems in finding a decent accommodation in the future as well. This is why we work to make this process easier for you by cutting down your effort in getting certification from a licensed health professional.
If you are looking for the best ESA doctor online, then look no further than My ESA Doctor. We are a BBB A+ accredited clinic that has been serving people since 2001. We house a team of licensed health professionals who will help you get evaluated through our HIPAA compliant telemedicine portal. The process is simple, quick, and convenient.
Telemedicine has been a revolutionary change in the pharmaceutical industry. It allows the patients to connect with health professionals and get the guidance they require. But, it has its disadvantages. While telemedicine has reduced the time and effort it needs for a patient to find a doctor, it has also caused a rise in the number of fraudulent clinics and ESA physicians. With the rise in the popularity of telemedicine, many people have started to scam patients in the name of ESA certifications and medical services. These doctors do not have any knowledge or experience regarding emotional support animals. They are not board certified and neither do they work from a real clinic. They are in for the money. Getting evaluation from such a doctor is a waste of your hard earned money. So, you’ve got to be wary of such scams and illegal physicians. Make sure that the doctor or clinic you are consulting is legit and has the authority to issue ESA doctor certificates.
If you are looking for a legit ESA doctor, look no further than My ESA Doctor. We are a BBB A+ accredited clinic based in California. We provide ESA certifications through our HIPAA compliant telemedicine portal. You will be evaluated face-to-face via video call by licensed health professionals.
There are thousands of doctors claiming to provide legitimate ESA letters online. For a patient, it is quite difficult to churn out the real ESA doctors among the herd of corrupt and fraudulent physicians online. That is why it is important for patients to be vigilant and ensure beforehand that their ESA doctor is legit. Always look for clinics and doctors that have an established history.
Basically, evaluations is a part of the process where the doctor interacts with the patient to determine whether an ESA would benefit the handler in terms of managing the symptoms of his condition. Likewise, during evaluations the patient too can determine whether the ESA doctor is knowledgeable or not. Also, while receiving the ESA letter, there are certain conditions that you can check. These are as follows: