I've had anxiety as long as I can remember; I learned that at the start of high school that my anxiety is socially based for the most part. Throughout high school I was rarely present, because some days I would get so anxious just from being in the building that my heart would race and I'd feel extremely dizzy. There were even times my anxiety caused me to throw up. It wasn't until after I finished school that I asked my parents for my own pet. At that time, I would have never believed that within a year I'd be the owner of five birds, because my heart was set on a cat. There were only three issues with me getting a cat, and they each had four legs and barked. My mom's and sister's Toy Poodles: Tony, Diva, and Dash. So my parents didn't want a cat living in the house, but sometimes I wonder if they could see the future and how I'd fall head over heels with owning a pet bird. I never would have ended up with five birds, if they changed their minds about the one cat. My mom suggested that I get a Parakeet, and I, loving all animals and really wanting a pet of my own, said "Yes!" Here are a few changes I noticed about myself since my birds (Pikachu, Connie, Quasimodo, Mohawk, and Ernie) became a part of my life.
1. I actually have a reason to get out of bed every morning.
Having both anxiety and depression together is it's own personal form of torture, and these afflictions are different for every single person who has it. Most days I didn't feel like getting out of bed, just because there wasn't anything important I needed to get done. The birds and I share my room, so now my mornings are like this: if I try to over sleep or stay in my bed too long my birds will scream, letting me know it's time to uncover them and change their food and water. The time they wake and decide they want to be uncovered changes day to day. They always make sure that they are up by noon, though.
2) I'm more social
I don't really talk to strangers much; I'm very shy around people, but within the past year, I made a friend just from the fact that we both love birds. (Of course, we have other things in common, too!) I volunteer at a local Petco and clean cat cages once a week, I got my three Parakeets (budgerigars) from that local Petco, so they know I have birds. I use to never talk to the employees there, and now some of them like to ask me about my birds and we talk about animals at the check out counter.
3) I'm never alone
Most of the time my anxiety really gets bad at night, after my family as gone to bed, and even though my birds are covered, they know when I'm having a panic attack and they make sure I remember I'm not alone. Whether it's by screaming until I get them out of their cage so they can cuddle up against my neck, or making kissy noises at me in the dark, they always stay up with me until I laugh and calm down.
Owning my own pet(s) has really helped me grow and has enabled me to lessen my anxiety and depression; having something depend on me makes me want to work hard to overcome my fears. Because these birds, though small, play a huge role in my life. They bring happiness into my dull, sad world. No, my birds didn't cure my anxiety or depression, but having them around sure has helped in many ways!
